THE eldest of five siblings, 16-year-old Nurul Azizah Johari tries to always set a good example to her two sisters and two brothers.

She did just that on Wednesday - she was named top Malay student at the O levels.

The Methodist Girls' School student scored eight A1s - and an A2 for Physics - to the delight of her parents, who took time off work to join her at the school.

'I was surprised she did so well as she did not perform well for her prelims,' said mum Rosidah Muhamad, 41, who runs a cafeteria.

Her dad runs a courier business.

Azizah scored B3s for Physics and Combined Humanities in the prelims, but turned these into A2 and A1 at the O levels.

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.