Several toppers, who did their schools and families proud, share a common secret to success: they gave extracurricular activities as much importance as academics.

Leah Anne Johnson from Mallya Aditi International School, who secured 98.5% in the ISC board exams, has been volunteering at Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology for two years. She is an active member of Bounce Back, a group that aims to raise funds for cancer patients in association with the Sameeksha Trust. “My school has been instrumental in supporting social work. When it comes to studies, I always resorted to last-minute preparations. In contrast, I feel working for society will be an ongoing affair in my life.”

Another high scorer, Parth Behani, also from Mallya Aditi International School, has represented the school in national-level robotics and debate competitions, and enjoys basketball and swimming. He has scored a centum in maths and computer science, 99 in history, civics, geography, and science, 96 in English and 95 in German in his ICSE 10th board examinations. “I used to pay attention in class. I never attended tuitions,” he said.

For Class 10 student, Devaamsh Rajesh from Ekya School in J.P. Nagar, it was all about hitting the right notes. A student of Western Classical music, he has performed in Shillong, attended a workshop with a Russian music conductor in Hyderabad, and performs in old-age homes to raise funds. He secured an aggregate of 97.4% in his ICSE board exams and topped his school. “I was very attentive in class and would clear my doubts then and there, which helped me in better understanding concepts,” he said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / by Sanath Prasad & Karthik Vittal G.S. / May 14th, 2018