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The results of the 2022 Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCE A-Level) examination will be released today (Feb. 17) at 2:30pm.

While many may be celebrating, knowing that they would be able to enrol in their dream courses, some may not be able to receive the scores they wanted despite putting in their utmost effort.

For those who are looking for a safe space to process their emotions or a pair of listening ears, they will be able to find one at "Beyond the Latter Grade," an initiative organised by a diverse group of young adults who have also struggled with their education previously.

Some of them are former A-Level repeat students.

Everyone is welcome

According to the press release, there will be a total of four sessions held respectively on Feb. 17, 19, 20, and 23, and each session will last for three hours.

The first session will be held at Yale-NUS College near Clementi while the remaining three sessions will be held at Studio Asobi located in Hougang.

However, the event is not affiliated with any institutions or organisations as it is funded by the organisers, who will also act as peer supporters during the sessions.

All A-Level students are welcome to attend the event regardless of whether they receive a score of AAA/B or CCC/C, as the former could also be distressing if the recipient is unable to enter his or her dream course.

What to expect

During the three-hour session, participants can join any of the facilitated conversations held at the tables in which peer supporters and students can chat about any topics pertaining to education.

They can also choose to speak to a peer supporter one-on-one whose main role is to actively listen and help lay out their thoughts.

However, no counselling or advising services will be provided.

Alternatively, for participants who prefer not to interact with others, they will also have the option to do whatever they want at the venue.

During the sessions, students can enjoy refreshments that are named creatively, such as "nuggets of wisdom" or "juice be yourself."

Confidentiality will be upheld

All conversations at the event will be kept private and confidential.

Peer supporters are also not allowed to exchange contacts with students, and all extensions of support will last only through the duration of the event.

Details of peer supporters

The peer supporters of the sessions consist of young adults between the age of 20 and 30 who come from various personal, academic, and professional backgrounds.

According to the press release, 40 per cent of them are currently working in student support or youth work roles or have assumed such positions previously, such as counsellors and teachers.

Additionally, 15 per cent of them are former A-Level repeat students.

One of these students is Marcus Chua, the main organiser of the event, who had struggled with A-Level during his Junior College (JC) years as a result of personal circumstances as well as a lack of support.

Chua told Mothership that he was led to believe that he was simply not smart or working hard enough.

Upon completing National Service, he decided to resit his A-Level exam as a private candidate after being turned away from his JC.

Despite the hardships and discouraging comments received along the way, Chua was successfully admitted to Yale-NUS College.

In addition to his personal experience, Chua has also witnessed the long-term impact that failures in national exams could have on individuals at work.

Hence, he decided to organise the sessions and hold a safe space for other struggling A-Level students or distraught graduates so that this community, which may not receive as much attention or media coverage, can be brought together and reframe how national examination results are perceived by Singaporeans.

Session details

Session 1

Date: Feb. 17, 7pm to 10pm

Location: Yale-NUS College (Registration in classroom 15)

Address: 16 College Ave West

Session 2

Date: Feb. 19, 7pm to 10pm

Location: Studio Asobi

Address: 705 Hougang Ave 2

Session 3

Date: Feb. 20, 7pm to 10pm

Location: Studio Asobi

Session 4

Date: Feb. 23, 7pm to 10pm

Location: Studio Asobi

Further information about the event and the peer supporters could be found here.

Top images courtesy of Marcus Chua