A Porirua Year 6 student has passed NCEA and Cambridge exams years before most teenagers even begin sitting them.
Raymond Hsu, 10, achieved Merit grades in NCEA Level 1 and Level 2 exams and has also received Cambridge results, including in international mathematics. He sat the assessments last year through a link school, a mainstream school that administers NCEA exams for students outside the usual system.
His father, Michael Hsu, filmed the moment the NCEA results appeared online.
“A few seconds later he was screaming, flapping his arms and jumping around the room,” Michael told RNZ. “Then I teased him, asking where his excellence was.”
The excitement contrasts with Raymond’s quiet manner. Softly spoken and reserved, he has previously been viewed as too young for advanced academic opportunities, including being listed only as a reserve at a Wellington maths competition.
Despite his age, Raymond can analyse Shakespeare, write essays on Death and the King’s Horseman, explain Morocco’s economy and solve advanced algebra. His online searches span biology, politics, social sciences and history.
Supplied / Michael Hsu)
Still, he says his favourite books are children’s classics by Roald Dahl.
At home, Raymond’s life looks much like any other 10-year-old’s. He swims, does karate, rides his scooter with friends and sometimes wakes up grumpy for school. The family lounge is filled with board games, train tracks and whiteboard doodles.
Michael said keeping balance has always been important.
“Just by the look of all the toys scattered around here, I’ve tried to make sure study doesn’t take over,” he said.
Supplied / Michael Hsu)
Michael noticed Raymond’s academic ability early, which he attributes in part to growing up in a multi-generational household and being immersed in two languages and cultures. By six, Raymond was reading novels aimed at teenagers.
Recognition from the education system was slower.
“A lot of schools didn’t get back to me. Some said, ‘You’re too young for this’,” Michael said. “Even NZQA said that at the time.”
Raymond is listed in his school’s gifted group, but Michael said opportunities were limited. With little homework coming home, he turned to weekend maths classes and structured learning at home. At nine, Raymond was approved to sit formal exams.
Teachers were hesitant to move him up a year, citing wellbeing concerns and the influence of older students. The school recommended he remain in Year 6 this year.
Raymond has also faced stereotypes.
“People assume ‘Asian maths genius’,” Michael said. “But literature is actually his favourite subject, and Level 2 maths was hard for him.”
Raymond does not plan to tell his friends about his results. For Michael, that perspective matters more than grades.
“It’s about learning,” he said. “Not perfection.”