I first taught Rohan when he was in grade 8. At that time he was a very quiet, serious, and responsible student.
Fast forward three years when I taught Rohan PreCalculus 12 (even though he was in grade 11). At that time he was a very quiet, serious, and responsible student! Glad you never changed Rohan! You'd already figured out what it took to be a great student when you were in grade 8 (a very rare event).
Speaking of rare events, I believe Rohan took PreCalculus 11 in Summer School before starting PreCalculus 12 last year. Though I have seen quite a few students do this, I actively DISSUADE it. The reason? Learning PC 11 in 6 weeks is too fast! You don't have time to take in all the concepts, etc. As a result, most students in such a situation end up doing very poorly in PreCalculus 12. But not Rohan. He worked very hard and scored a high, high mark last year. And now he can just concentrate on Calculus this year... (actually, I'm not even certain he IS taking Calculus this year. Hmmmmm...) Anyway, well done Rohan!
This year Rohan is one of my two Peer Tutors (more on the other one next week) in my Math 8 class. This can be a very challenging task: helping younger students, some of whom may not be very strong or confident or interested in mathematics. In his kind and quiet way, Rohan has done a great job assisting my grade 8 students (and it's a big help to ME too! Thanks RD!)
I know I mentioned this on the blog a while back but I have to mention once more the best memory I will EVER have of Rohan. Earlier this year, he invited me to his Sabha Pravesham. This is is the debut on-stage performance for a carnatic (Indian-style) vocal student, after undertaking years of training. I figured that Rohan would be one of the supporting instrumentalists. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that "quiet", "reserved", "shy" Rohan would be the one and only SINGER for the THREE-HOUR concert. WHAAAAAAAAAT?!?!?!?
Needless to say I HAD to attend. When the curtain opened I giggled to myself a little. "Yep, there's Rohan. And it actually looks like he is going to sing. How is this possible?!". And then he actually DID begin to sing...
My jaw literally dropped. I'm serious; I sat there, mouth agape for about the first 10 minutes. WHAT A VOICE! Incredible! I wish everyone who knows Rohan (even a little bit) could experience what I did. Such poise! Such control! Beautiful! Thanks again for inviting me Rohan. I will NEVER forget it!
I'm really proud of you for all your hard work, Rohan. And of course I commend you on your high academic achievement. But what I admire you most for is your gentle, thoughtful nature, your maturity, and your willingness to persevere at a difficult task. These are all things that will serve you well throughout your life. I wish you nothing but the best!