At least 31 students in Hong Kong have achieved top marks in the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme, even after a global outcry from test-takers over concerns that the mathematics subject was too difficult.
More than 2,600 Hong Kong students sat the IB exams, a near 20 per cent increase over the past five years, with the results released on Sunday.
The IB exams assess students’ knowledge of several core academic subjects and play a key role in their university applications.
Kristen Lo Man-yi, 17, was the only student from St Paul’s Co-Educational College to achieve a perfect score of 45 in the programme, while eight of her classmates got 44.
Kristen, who said she “didn’t expect this [result] at all”, thanked her friends and classmates for their support throughout the two-year slog.
“I think the IB is like a marathon, and so I think a lot of work is actually continuous because we have to test two years’ worth of knowledge,” she said.
“So I think making sure that every step of the way you’re doing the right preparation, such as making notes and all that … makes the lead-up to the final stretch before exams much easier to handle.”
