PADANG BESAR: Maryam Zaheerah Abdullah, 17, has never let her left eye impairment which she's had since childhood be an excuse to neglect her studies.
Instead, the youngest of four siblings uses it as motivation and has become one of the top 2023 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) candidates in Perlis after earning 8As.
A student at SMK Raja Puan Muda Tengku Fauziah in Kaki Bukit, Maryam said: "I was born with a corneal defect in my left eye which forces me to rely entirely on my right eye. But I didn't want this to be an excuse for not studying hard because education is crucial, even for disabled persons,"
Due to her home's distance from school, which is about 6km, Maryam chose to stay in the school hostel to avoid burdening her mother with daily commutes.
"Staying in the hostel allowed me to focus completely on my studies, especially with the strong Internet connection there," she said when met at her home in Kampung Sena Dalam, here today.
"I often studied late into the night and preferred to study alone rather than in groups. However, I always helped friends who sought my assistance, as they also supported me by sharing notes."
Maryam added she also faced mental health challenges in her pursuit of success, and at one point required treatment at Tuanku Fauziah Hospital in Kangar.
"After the SPM trial exams, I had severe mental stress due to the fear of failing in my studies. This led me to seek treatment and counseling at the hospital. However, with my parents' and teachers' support, I managed to control the stress," she said.
The daughter of Abdullah Abdul Rahman, 65, and Zuridah Abdullah, 55, Maryam aspires to become a lawyer, but also wishes to pursue maritime and shipping studies at Institut Kemahiran Mara.
"My mother is a rubber tapper, and my father, a former soldier, is now paralysed due to Parkinson's disease. This is my way of repaying their sacrifices. I also hope to further my education to higher levels," she said.
Meanwhile, Perlis Education Department director Rose Aza Che Arifin said that the state's 2023 SPM results showed improvement, with a state average grade of 4.74 compared with 4.82 in 2022.
"This 0.08 improvement was driven by 50 candidates achieving straight A's in all subjects."