Management and Staff of Baulevu High & Koroqaqa Primary School;
Invited Guests;
Teachers; and
Students.
Bula Vinaka and a very good morning to all of you.
It is indeed a pleasure to be here today to officiate at your combined Annual Prize Giving Ceremony. Today is truly a special day
Ladies and Gentlemen
There is a special meaning that a Prize Giving Day has in the life of the school community, as Prize Giving Day Celebrates success. It is an occasion when high academic performance of students is acknowledged and rewarded.
Let me congratulate all the awardees. Winning a prize is a great moment for a student. It boosts his or her self-esteem and self-confidence and urges him or her to achieve still better results in future.
What about those many of you who are not prize winners to-day? Should you be discouraged? Or should the situation make you lose confidence in yourself? Not at all. On the contrary, it should urge you to challenge yourself to be a prize winner on the next Prize Giving Day. You will work harder, with more discipline and steadfastness. You will manage your time more effectively. You will organise your study systematically well and high performance is bound to come and that will earn you prizes.
Seek to compete with yourself, always trying to do better next time. I urge all of you students to work to your utmost potential. Strive towards perfection. If each and every student adopts this strategy and challenge, the overall performance of the school will be high indeed.
Ladies and Gentlemen
Let me congratulate the school Management and Board, the teachers, the parents and the students for these excellent results. It is my hope that next year’s results, will even be better.
Ladies and Gentlemen
I am happy to learn that students at the school are encouraged to participate in extra-curricular activities. I warmly congratulate the students and the school for these initiatives even though these activities are not examinable.
To you students, I will say this: Do not miss any chance of participating in any extra- curricular activity that your school offers, be it theatre, debate, quiz, tree planting, organizing an exhibition or an outing, a concert, blood donation, or poem recitation.
In the poem “IF” of Rudyard Kipling we have this sentence: “Fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds worth of distance run” – meaning spend your precious time, while you are young – in doing worthy activities. Time is unforgiving. It does not come back. It does not give you a second chance. Distance run means worthy activities.
Participating in extra-curricular activities will help you acquire and develop numerous skills. Organisational skills, research skills, leadership, time management, the sense of responsibility and team spirit. You will become an attractive person. And you will succeed in life. If you’ve never taken part in an extra-curricular activity, grab the first opportunity that comes your way. If you are used to taking part, well, keep it up.
I can assure you that participation in extracurricular activities, will help you dearly in developing numerous personal skills. Above all self-confidence and public speaking skills. You can do it. Anyone can do it.
I would therefore urge the school management and teachers to provide as much opportunity to students to organise and be engaged in extracurricular activities.
- Woodsworth wrote, “The child is father of the man”, but what does this mean? It means that the child or young man or/girl you are today will produce the adult you will become in future. And that is a number of years from now. You are now in your formative years.
So get involved in activities that will develop your personality, your character. Constructive activities like theatre, sports, music, poetry recitation.
Of course, without neglecting your academic studies. I know that the school is doing very well in that context. Keep it up. As Rabindranath Tagore says in his poem – You Will Be and I quote, “Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high,” unquote.
To all of us present here today, I would recommend reading, understanding and applying the ideas contained in the letter of Abraham Lincoln to the Head Master of the school his son was attending.
Here are some extracts and I quote, “Teach him to be gently with people”
– “In school, teach him that it is far more honorable to fail than to cheat”
–“Teach him if you can that a dollar earned is of far more value than a dollar found”
– “Teach him to learn to lose, and also enjoy winning”
– “Teach him, if you can, the wonder of books but also give him quite time to ponder on the eternal mystery of birds in the sky, bees in the sun and flowers on a green hillside”
And at the end of the poem, he had and I quote, “Teach him always to have sublime faith in himself (self-confidence), because, then, he will have sublime faith in mankind,” unquote.
Beautiful and great values that schools would do well to inculcate in our school children.
To the families of those graduating and earning certifications and Awards, congratulations to you and you should know that your support through this process made an enormous impact. I’m sure you’re very proud of your graduates as they close this portion of their lives and prepare for their next steps into a new career.
Furthermore, I urge you to continue encouraging and supporting your child’s learning, especially for those in primary school. Actively participate in their school activities, as they need your time and attention more, especially at this age. And during this festive season, I encourage all parents to spend more quality time with your children and enjoy the festive season together as a family.
With those words, I wish the students of Baulevu High and Koroqaqa Primary School all the very best in your future endeavors and a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.
Vinaka Vakalevu. Thank You.