A Level Results day: Paddington Academy student beats the odds
A student from Paddington Academy who four years ago could not speak a word of English has just gained three A*s and an A at A Level.
Mohammed Said Noor, 18, achieved A*s in maths, biology and chemistry and an A in German.
He arrived in the UK four years ago when he was 14 and could not speak English, having lived in Germany all his life with his parents who are political refugees from Iraq.
He is now looking forward to studying medicine at Cambridge.
“I didn’t think the exams had gone well at the time,” he said. “So I didn’t enjoy my summer because I was worried. But now I am pleased.
“I am the first person in my family to go anywhere like Cambridge.”
Mohammed learnt English by chatting to a teacher about the news in English for three hours each week.
