SO nervous was 16-year-old Kayla Dixon about the results of her General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) exams that her entire family had to accompany her to collect her results on August 25 at Hazeley Academy in the United Kingdom.

Her father Ian explained that the Jamaican-born teen could not bear opening the results so he had to do it, and when he did: “Her mum (Angela) and I were astonished, immensely proud and very impressed”.

Kayla was the top student in her school’s fifth form cohort, copping 11 A*s (pronounced A star) and one A.

Kayla, who migrated to the UK in 2005, said she predicted getting only 6 ‘A’s and was equally astounded by the results.

“I’m delighted with my results as I got the highest grades in my school and all my hard work paid off,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

She sat English language, English literature, mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, history, philosophy, Spanish, dance, computer science, and health and social care. On top of her academic timetable, the teen did ballet, modern dance, volunteer work at a nursing home, and frequently attended university open days and medical lectures.

Her parents said she has always been a hard worker, and reported that from her days at Mona Preparatory, while living in Barbican, St Andrew, that trait along with respect for self and others were hallmarks of her character.

The teen has also displayed emotional strength, not allowing her mother’s battle with cancer, to derail her academic progress.

“I was very worried, so I made a conscious decision not to tell her just how sick I was,” Angela Dixon said. “I started treatment within weeks of her starting secondary school and she was just 11. It broke my heart. I did this never saying the word cancer, but telling her the medicine would cause my hair to fall out.

“When she did find out, I had already completed treatment and was well, but she still cried and she was a little angry that I didn’t tell her, but that didn’t last very long. The second time around I made her a promise, which was if ever I have really bad news I would tell her, otherwise I would take my medicine and be brave. This left the way clear for her to not worry too much about me,” the mother said.

Kayla reported that her mother’s illness did put her in a foul mood, but her bravery and promise to inform her if the cancer got worse encouraged her.

As for her volunteer work, the teen explained that it is serving to prepare her for a career in medicine.

“I do this as I want to help out in my community and enjoy improving people’s days while gaining work experience that will aid me in becoming a doctor,” she told Career & Education.

She is currently attending Royal Latin Grammar School where she is pursuing A levels, and intends to matriculate into the medical programme at a university in London, Birmingham or Oxford, as she wishes to stay close to home, in Buckingham. Her father has all confidence that she will achieve her career goal as he believes that he has a focused child.

“Kayla is self-motivated and commits to do her best at any task she takes on. Ever since deciding to pursue medicine, academics became her top priority,” he said.

Asked how she manages it all, Kayla said: “I stay on top of my studies, while still having fun, by ensuring that I stay focused during classes to reduce my workload at home. I also aim to work efficiently in order to leave time for other activities, such as going to dance classes or going out with my friends.”

“My biggest supporters have always been my family, in particular my mum and dad who have always pushed me to do my best while still ensuring that I did not overwork myself. They constantly give me pep talks and believe in me completely. I feel like this motivated me even more to work to the best of my abilities,” said the teen.

She also credits her teachers at Hazeley and her tutor John Thaxtor with her GCSE success.