ICSE Results 2022: Balancing music classes and taking notes, how Bengaluru toppers managed their performance

Oommen, who got 498 marks or 99.6 per cent and secured an All India Rank (AIR) of 5, said was actually surprised with her scores. “I was never really expecting this score. It is actually a surprise. Credit definitely goes to my mother (Rebecca) who tutored me for the exams. In fact, she became a tuition teacher during the Covid-19 lockdown,” said the 16-year-old.

The student of the Bethany High School and Harmony, The Music School, in Bengaluru, said she could only study late at night. “I studied mostly during late nights, especially after 1 am. This is because I attend my music school in the evening after finishing my regular school and then get on my studies. This meant it was all about balancing between music and academics, although it was intense. But then it was actually worth it,” said Oommen.

Oommen, who practises Western Classical music on Tuesdays and the choirs on Wednesdays, also picked up several skills, including baking, crocheting, knitting, art, and playing the ukulele, during the pandemic. She is keen on pursuing Computer Science engineering in the future.

As many as 23,293 students from Karnataka appeared for ICSE Class 10 board exams, wherein 11,793 or 50.63 per cent were boys and 11,500 or 49.37 per cent were girls. The pass percentage of the state was recorded at 99.99 per cent and the girls outperformed the boys, with a pass percentage of 99.99 per cent. The boys recorded a pass percentage of 99.98 per cent. Only two boys and a girl were unsuccessful. The state pass percentage is above the national score which is recorded at 99.97 per cent.

According to the data provided by the ICSE board, the Southern and Western regions have the best pass percentage at 99.99 per cent. The Southern region also has the highest percentage of girls at 49.48 per cent, who had appeared for the examination.

Adi Kishore, who scored 498 with an AIR of 5, was attending his JEE Advanced coaching classes when the results were announced. “I was at the coaching centre till 6 pm but the results were announced at 5 pm. It was indeed a tense moment for me,” said Kishore.

Kishore, 16, who wants to pursue research in the field of Physics, spent about six hours a day studying. “The two pre-boards actually made all the difference and it helped me perform well in the final examination. Although I made my notes, I was sticking to the textbook exercises all throughout my preparations. My aim is to pursue research in the field of physics at IISc Bengaluru. I have already started preparing for the same,” said Kishore who is also a trained Carnatic singer.

“Carnatic singing has helped me destress most of my academic pressure. I also love to write poems and I mostly write descriptive poems themed around nature,” adds Kishore who studied at Trio World School.

Sandhya S from New Horizon Public School in Bengaluru scored 498 to secure 99.6 per cent with an AIR of 5. Sandhya, who wants to become a physicist, said she believes that taking down her own notes for every subject helped her excel in the ICSE Class 10 board exam.

“I prepared my own notes and extracted only the important points from them. In fact, English literature was a challenge for me, but I managed to pick up my vocabulary and writing skills by reading online storybooks. My favourite subject is Physics and I would like to become a physicist. I also want to be a professor and teach physics later,” said Sandhya who loves drawing and is also into throwball.

In Karnataka, besides Bengaluru, two other districts — Bellary and Mysore — had a topper each. Anushka Karnam from Pupil Tree School in Bellary scored 99.4 per cent and Meghna Hazari from Notre Dame School in Mysore scored 99.2 per cent.