We recently had the honour to interview the Top Student of 2021, Ivan Yeoh from Sri KDU International Secondary School (SKISS), who not long ago scored 12A*s in the IGCSE and was named Top in Malaysia for the subject Physics. What an achievement! Read Ivan Yeoh’s interview below:
Tell us about yourself.
I am a competitive person and love challenges. I am also an ambivert who loves my alone time and at the same time, enjoy the company of others. My favourite activities include playing chess, reading comics, playing basketball and going out for outings with my friends.
Why did you/your parents choose Sri KDU International School (SKIS)?
My parents chose Sri KDU because my cousins studied in Sri KDU and they gave positive feedback about the school’s education. Therefore, my parents sent both my older brother and I to Sri KDU because of their trust in the school to provide quality education.
Can you share your experience studying at Sri KDU International School?
Studying at Sri KDU has mostly been very fun and lessons were engaging. In the early years, house points were a great motivation for me to study and do well in lessons. Towards the IGCSE examination period, it was my friends and teachers who provided me with moral support to do well in my examinations. Overall, it is due to the conducive environment that made me excel.
What activities were you involved in at school?
I am an active sports person so I joined multiple sports related to extracurricular activities (ECAs), such as competitive swimming, the school’s handball team, and the badminton ECA. I was also a pianist so I participated in music events such as Paramount Championship under the Band, Jazz Band, and the ‘Black Tie’ music category. Although I was involved in many activities, I never found the activities stressful but very energising instead as it allowed me to take a breather from my academics.
What subjects did you take for your IGCSE? Why did you choose this subject combination?
I took 12 subjects: English as First Language, English Literature, Extended Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Accounting, Economics, Geography, Malay as Foreign Language and Mandarin as Foreign Language. My options were Accounting, Economics, Geography and Physics. The reason why I chose these 4 subjects is because I have an interest in numbers and data. Besides that, I thought that the subjects I chose complemented each other and that the content would be very intriguing.
Which is your favourite subject? Why do you like it?
My favourite subject is Chemistry. I liked it because the subject content was not only interesting but also surprisingly easy to digest. Besides that, Ms Sharmillah has always been very fun to be around and her lessons are always very lively and interactive.
As one of SKIS’s IGCSE Top Scorer and Outstanding Cambridge learner Awards recipients - please share your study tips and advice that you may have.
My main study advice is to attend school every day! Don’t miss out on school because each lesson is very important. Besides that, do as many past papers as possible. However, be aware to not confuse yourself with answers from older syllabuses that are not applicable in the current syllabus. Finally, instead of studying by the hours, set yourself targets for the day and achieve them. These are my 3 top tips, so hopefully they will benefit you in some way.
What is your best memory (memories) of SKIS?
My best memories (as cringy and cliché as this sounds) are the times that I spent with my friends in SKIS. I enjoyed the outings, the school trips we went on together, the basketball games on the weekends, the small talks, the overly complicated conversations, the gossip, the drama, the jokes shared, debunking the school’s myths and many more. It has been a pleasure to form many new friendships over the years and I thank all of them for making my years at Sri KDU wonderful.
Which programme / university will you be going to? Why did you select this programme?
I am currently doing A-Level. I selected A-Level because I feel that this programme has an examination style that is more suited for me.
What do you expect to be doing ten years from now?
I am currently exploring different career paths. I hope to be doing something challenging and thought-provoking that will give me a sense of fulfilment and achievement in the future.
We visited numerous international schools in Klang-Valley and Sri KDU Subang Jaya was not even on our list. Reason being it is way out of our travelling radius. However, we are glad we made the visit to the school before our final call, and it was the best decision ever! It was a huge transition period for us during the first 2 weeks into school, but the school’s team (Teachers, Administrative and Parent’s Teacher Association) made us feel right at home. We were given clear guidance and was kept well informed on the happenings in the school. My daughter blended into the community quite well with the care provided by the Homeroom teacher. All the teachers here are the kindest, as she told me. She looks forward to going to school and has become more disciplined in terms on knowing what tasks she needs to complete daily. She has gained so much confidence during this short period of time and was given the encouragement to explore and develop her abilities here. She was just selected as the new Primary House Captain for Year 6 AY2022/2023.
Every parent want to find the ‘perfect’ school for their child and are afraid of making the wrong decision. For us, as long she is safe and happy, we believe, she will eventually find the way to her own success.