Healthy competition helped twins to excel in exams

Vivian Wanjiku (left) and Yvonne Njoki at Lord Egerton Academy in Njoro, Nakuru. The twins scored 407 and 403 marks respectively. [Daniel Chege, Standard]

Twins who sat this year's Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exams at Lord Egerton Academy in Njoro, Nakuru County, recorded almost similar marks even as they excelled in the tests.

Vivian Wanjiku and Yvonne Njoki, who scored 407 and 403 marks respectively, hope to join Alliance Girls High School. They are 13 years old.

Wanjiku wants to be a doctor while Njoki is looking forward to becoming a chemical engineer.

Wanjiku, whose hobby is reading, has been described as social. On the other hand, Njoki is quiet.

"To succeed, we engaged in a healthy competition with my sister Njoki. She used to beat me but my turn came. But I am happy we both scored above 400 marks," said Wanjiku.

The two were at home when they received news of their stellar performances. Wanjiku was washing clothes while her sister was with their mother, Rachael Nyokabi, in the sitting room.

Wanjiku's results came in first, Njoki said. "Our mother waited until she got my results. Then there were celebrations. Our mother has been a great support to us," said Njoki.

She attributed their success to discipline and support from parents and teachers.

Eight out of 67 pupils at the school scored above 400. The top students scored 413 marks.

Dr Nelson Mara, the school proprietor, said he is impressed by the twins' performance.

"They have been competing between themselves, especially in the last two years. The competition gave them confidence. They worked so hard no wonder they have excelled," said Mara.

He hopes the two will join the same school, Alliance Girls, as per their desire.

"They have had a challenge paying school fees and the school's management had to chip in but we are wishing them the best of luck as they proceed to secondary school," said Mara.

Raymond Thungu, 14, of Race Tract Primary, excelled in his KCPE examination by scoring 405 marks. Race Tract Primary is a public school in Nakuru.

Thungu, who was always on a special diet because of stomach problems, said he was forced to carry food to school. There were times he had to study from home because of pain.

"I was in and out of school because of stomach issues," he said.

Thungu said last year was the most stressful for him as the government ran a crash programme to recover the time lost during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"At one point, I had to borrow books from my classmates and study at home," he said.

Despite that, he said determination, hard work, and support from his mother and teachers helped him perform well in the exams.

He hopes to join Mang'u High School. Thungu's dream is to be Kenya's president in future.

"I want to help Kenyans who have been suffering. I know I can change their lives by being elected president," the boy said.

His mother Tabitha Njoki said his dedication and sacrifice helped him excel.

Race Track headteacher Daniel Kimani said the crash programme that saw pupils study within six months instead of a year affected the results in all the schools.

However, he is optimistic that next year will be better as the school calendar goes back to normal.

Kimani said five of their students scored 400 marks and above.

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