College rewards work completed by city students

From the Express and Echo 17/10/08

THEY might still have months of studying left before embarking on exciting career paths but city teenagers were still keen to celebrate their achievements so far at an Exeter College ceremony rapidly becoming a feature on the education calendar.

The AS Awards 2008 honoured those who have worked tirelessly during their first year at the college.

All 36 of the 17-year-olds who were given prizes have just passed their AS exams and are now completing the last year of A-levels before going on to university.

College bosses introduced the ceremony three years ago to boost the profile of the new exam and to reward those who passed it. The students have had to contend with Sats and GCSEs and have sat a major exam almost every year since they were 14. Prizes were given for the best student in each subject.

Assistant principal Anne Oxborough said she was very pleased at recent Government moves to scrap some Sats tests.
“It's great to hold awards like this to celebrate the work of the most examined generation just after the announcement was made,” she said.
“I think it's important we mark achievements of students while they are still withus – as this group are – as well as when they finish their A-levels.
“We also want to recognise that AS levels in themselves are a substantial achievement.”

One winner was Ziad Khreisheh, who has six siblings – three of whom went to Oxford.
Ziad, a former St Peter's School pupil, got four As in his AS levels in maths and science subjects and hopes to study economics at Cambridge.
Jason Frost, 18, from Dawlish, got the IT prize while talented trumpet and piano player Corben Lee scored his award for music.