Golden Advice to the 2021 Form Ones Who’ve Joined High School

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Over the last couple of days, form ones have been trickling into high schools. They need guidance and advice about what to expect in and after high school. Most of them (actually all) are anxious about a different environment and lifestyle, which is characterized by the change many things including names.

The school headteacher is now the principal. Desks are now lockers. Fountain pens (if they still exist) are now biro pens. To some schools, shorts are now trousers. The journey of our teenager is currently in progress. The Egg is Now Larva, and the pupil is officially a student.

High School Makes Men Out of Boys, and Strong Women Out of Girls

High school is where lives are made. It’s arguably the most adventurous life for any person who has been there.

2020 form one students who got the Starehe CDF Scholarships. (Photo: Twitter)

For the boarding students, the mattress is not yet a foolscap. The food is still tasty and edible. The preps are still attendable. How do you keep them in that mood?

It’s in high school where lives are made. It’s in high school when boys will be men. It’s in high school where girls will be strong women. It’s in high school where young people between 14 and 19 will discover who they really are. It’s in high school when many mistakes will be made by these young people.

Learn from Your Mistakes

Those who are smart enough will learn from their mistakes. It’s in high school when most students will be at the peak of their adolescence, they need guidance. It is after high school where students go their way in life, some go to campus, others to colleges, others to TVETs, while others get married. It’s one to choose which way they will go.

Don’t stop the metamorphosis

Our message from The Global Student Mentorship Center is Don’t stop the metamorphosis. As a young King, a young Queen with big dreams and ambitions. You can achieve more, you can go places, you can reach where your parents never reached, you can break all the odds.

It doesn’t matter if your mom went to high school or not, it doesn’t matter if your school has ever taken anybody to university or not.

You must do it. It starts today. Don’t stop the metamorphosis. You didn’t come this far only to come this far!

Form Ones Need Information, Not Motivation

Our students make decisions every day, but they don’t make an informed decision. Students need information, not motivation. These form ones need information, from us. You can’t make an informed decision until you have information, can you?

Form one students need to be encouraged that it’s possible. That’s not motivation, it’s the truth. And we have real-life examples.

The truth is that it’s only 40% of students who join class one that finishes form four. The other 60% are victims of early marriages, the excuse of teenage pregnance, death, the excuse of lack of school fees, the excuse of poor performance, underage employment and exploitation, school drop outs, among other causes. If our true and faithful God will grant you the life will you have an excuse not to finish four with a good grade?

Deputy President William Ruto adressing KCPE candidates. (Photo: KassMedia)

What We Learnt in High School Shaped Us

We were made in high school. My life was shaped in high school. I am who I am today because of my high school life.

Those ambiguous algebraic equations, the long chemical formulas, the world war history classes, the lessons of Pangaea, Panthalasa and the Mohorovisic Discontinuity, Shamirisho Kitondo, all these shaped us in a way that can’t be explained.

I was molded in high school. I am a product of my high experiences. I am made in high school.

Your Choice or Not, the School Does Not Matter Now

I didn’t have the fortune of going to one of those boarding schools where they were served sausages and bacon for breakfast. No, mine was a no-frills school. Breakfast was a cup of water mixed with a cup of milk, added in was a pinch of sugar which was thrown from five metres away, with some tea leaves which gave it some character. I am proud of my high school. It hardened me. It made me a man. The love I have for my high school is unexplainable.

As am writing this article. Nostalgic mood is getting the better side of my mind. I have very many high school memories. All of them good, no matter what I was going through.

I attended a local school, I am calling it local because I was from the same village. We were the first boys in the school, the preceding classes were mixed. Agirl school was formed across the fence.

School Innings and Outings

One thing I can’t forget is the opportunity for innings and outings. This was the moment when even the ones who never showered took a shower. They would borrow sweaters and trousers to go for outings. Everybody wanted to look smart. All the trousers and shirts were ironed (under the bed). Those were the moments when everybody all of a sudden came from Nairobi. This made them look modernized. Boys from Nairobi were appealing to girls. I remember a time when a boy from our school told a girl that he came from Nai (short form of Nairobi). The girl asked which estate. The boy said Naitiri, which is a place in Bungoma.

Contests

Few people would attend Maths Contest. Many feared. Seeing an index one in form four getting 0 out of 45 was not an experience people liked. When going for the contests at Maseno School people would talk alot in the bus but when coming back all the contest answer sheets with marks would not pass beyond Majengo ~ they would be thrown through the window. Nobody would talk to each other in the bus.

Nicknames

Every teacher had a nickname. Especially the harsh ones. These names were deep secret and would never be revealed to the teachers unless you had a death wish.

Punishment

Punishment was sleeping on the verandah the whole day, removing tree clumps, digging the farm, washing the entire dining hall, expulsion, slashing the whole football pitch, etc. These are the experiences that make a man out of a boy. Yes, you will make mistakes, but learn from them. Adolescence is a stage of making mistakes. Hating the teacher won’t make you better. Listening to his guidance will make you better.

Don’t Just be there, Do Something in High School

As a high schooler, join a club, make friends, win souls, be happy, go to the library, read magazines, go for trips, vie for a leadership position, be real, stay humble, be good to your fellow students, consult from teachers, be good in class, be somewhere in the school.

Think about your parents as this is an investment they are making in you, will you give them an A, an E or a Baby? Remember every input has an output. Start as early as this.

Enjoy your high school life. Enjoy whatever you do, those preps, those outings, the contests, the lunchtime githeri, that Deputy Principal. Enjoy every moment. You’ll never see it again.

Your KCPE Marks Does Not Matter, You Can Achieve Your Dreams

Go through high school, don’t let high school go through you. Don’t just go to high school because of 100% transition. Yes you can achieve your dreams. It doesn’t matter your KCPE marks. Young King, Princess, Young Champion, you can! Yes you can. It’s possible. Start today. Will you start from day one or one day?

You reap more than what you sow. If what you reap is being attentive in class, attending classes, not faking illnesses in the dormitory, managing your time properly, being organized by having a timetable and adhering to it, respecting the teachers and subordinate staff, helping your fellow students, going for preps willingly, revising well, being prayerful, thinking about your parents and guardians, learning from mistakes, I guarantee you success.

What will you Become after High School?

It’s the little things that matter. So you need the right mindset. “Don’t Conform To The Patterns Of The World But Be Transformed By Renewal Of Your Mind” ~ Romans: 12:2. Everything begins from the mind.

From the mind we get the thoughts, from the thoughts we get the words, from the words we get the actions, from the actions we get the habits, from the habits we get the behaviour, from the behaviour we get the character, from the character we get the lifestyle, from the lifestyle we get the life, from the life we get the history. What history will you leave in this school?

Remember high school will mold you, it will not break you, but the question is, what will it mold you to?

I Wish All The Form Ones All The Best In Their High School Journey.

I Will Always Be There For You, With You. Be Blessed By The Most High God.

By Sam Vidambu

San Vidambu

Sam Vidambu is the CEO of Ambigen LTD. He’s The Lead Trainer at Global Student Mentorship Center, an organization that runs mentorship programs in High Schools and Colleges. He’s the Founder of Sam Vidambu Foundation~ an organization that supports bright and needy students in high schools. He’s an A-Transformational Coach, Motivational Speaker, Author, and A CPA.

NB: This article was written by Sam Vidambu. Minor editing has been done to correct grammar, and eliminate redundancy.