Senior Reporter
kevon.felmine@guardian.co.tt
The line outside an ice cream shop at SouthPark Mall, San Fernando, began to buckle just hours after the final paper was written, as children fresh out of the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) pressed forward, hoping to be among the first 100 to claim a voucher and a bank account reward.
It was a sharp contrast to how the day began.
From as early as 7 am, parents across South Trinidad stood outside school gates, walking their children in and holding on to their own nerves as tightly as they held their children’s hands.
For many, the SEA remains as much a test for parents as it is for students – the weight of expectation settling in long before the first question is read.
For Adaline Melville, that pressure has not lessened with time.
“I know we tend to say that every year it is the same thing and we should get accustomed, but just for the preparation for the day alone and what the Ministry of Education usually instils, to me it is a bit nerve-wracking for both parents and child, and I don’t think this feeling will ever go away,” she said.
Around her in San Fernando, parents managed the wait in different ways. Some paced. Others spoke quietly among themselves. A few turned to prayer.
By mid-afternoon, that tension had shifted.
Hundreds of students and their parents descended on SouthPark Mall, turning fast food outlets and dessert spots into celebration zones.
At Certified Scoop and Pizza Hut, lines stretched and tightened, and at one point, the rush threatened to spill over as some tried to edge ahead, eager to secure the limited rewards on offer.
For the children, however, the moment was less about vouchers and more about release.
Montrose Government Primary School student Sapphire Abraham moved through the crowd with a sense of cautious relief.
She believed she did “pretty” well, though parts of the paper gave her trouble.
“It was hard. The maths was hard because there were some questions... the wording and the trickery of the questions. Number 37 asked about points and stuff, and I did not understand it,” she said.
Her father, Fadeel Abraham, said the challenge of SEA does not fade, even with experience. Having gone through it before, he was deliberate about managing his own emotions.
“It was still tough. I was not too anxious because I did not want my anxiety to transfer onto her, but yes. It was challenging. It was gruelling,” he said.
Inside exam rooms earlier in the day, students navigated a paper that, for many, came with an unexpected twist.
Several said they had prepared extensively for report writing, only to be met with a short story in the creative writing section.
St Joseph Terrace Private School student Isabella Ribeiro said she felt confident overall, describing the mathematics paper as easier than expected, but the shift in the writing component caught her off guard.
“When I found out it was a story, I got very vexed,” she said.
Ashish Bhookal shared a similar experience.
“We were prepared for report writing, but they threw a curve ball and brought a short story, so it was a little hard to switch,” he said.
Others relied on strategy to manage the pressure. Azalia Baptiste of St Stephen’s Anglican Primary School said she skipped over difficult mathematics questions and returned to them later, describing the overall exam as fair despite its challenges.
By the time the final bell rang, the mood had shifted decisively. The long months of preparation gave way to immediate plans – trips to the beach, outings to the mall, video games and, for many, simply catching up on sleep.
For parents, the end of the exam brought relief, but not quite closure.
At the Trinidad Muslim League Primary School, where students were greeted with medals and balloons, Guardian Media’s Radhica De Silva urged parents to be mindful in the weeks ahead, as children wait for the results that will shape their next step.
By evening, the anxiety that had defined the morning had eased into something lighter.
