Jonathan, 12, passes but insists he's no prodigy

Jonathan Prior was yesterday playing down his achievement in becoming probably the youngest person in Britain to pass an A level.

The 12-year-old from Motspur Park in south-west London achieved a D grade in information technology but he denied that he was a child prodigy, saying he enjoyed computers.

The youngster is educated at home, although he took the IT course at Ryde College, a private tutorial college near Watford, Hertfordshire, having already completed a GCSE in the same subject. He is taught by his mother Rehena, a former school teacher, and father Bernard, who is a fireman.

"They teach me all the basics," he said. "I take all the information out of books, I write them down and maybe take some questions on it, testing myself on what I know and learning techniques. In a way, no one is teaching me. I'm teaching myself how to do it."

The record for the youngest person to pass an A-level is believed to be held by Ganesh Sittampalam, who was awarded an A in maths in 1988 when he was just nine years and four months old.

Tom Carver, from Seaton in Devon and a former pupil at Colyton Grammar School in Colyton, Devon, was believed to have achieved the largest haul of passes. Mr Carver achieved five As and two Bs - missing out on a sixth top grade by just three marks - and received special commendation for coming first in the country in the physics paper he sat.

Mr Carver, who has won a place at Cambridge to study maths, said it was unfair of people to claim that the exams were now easier. "I think it is hard on everyone who has been working for two years to say it does not matter, your exams were easier, that is why you got good marks," he said.

"I do not think there are many people who can compare objectively the exams we sat and the exams they sat 30 years ago. Syllabuses change and the style of exam is very different. Exams are better set out and better written."

Meanwhile, many students overcame adversity to achieve outstanding results this summer. Mesar Hameed, 18, a blind Iraqi teenager who lost his sight after fleeing Saddam Hussein's regime during the 1991 Gulf War, obtained 3 As at A-level - Physics, Computer Science and Maths - plus an A grade for AS Further Maths. "I cannot describe my feelings at getting these results. I was so happy. The results were even better than I expected," he said.

While living in a refugee camp in Saudi Arabia in 1992, Mr Hameed suffered an eye infection which was wrongly treated. It left him totally blind. The family moved to Sweden in August 1993 and came to England in 2000. Mr Hameed studied for his A-levels at Exeter College, supported by specialist departments for the blind at The West of England School.

Mr Hameed will now study Computer Science at Bath University in October.

Meanwhile, Louise Redsull, who has been blind from birth, achieved five grade-A passes in History, Law, Psychology, Sociology and General Studies and has won a place at Bath University to study psychology.

Judith Dunthorne, 18, from King Edward VI Handsworth School in Birmingham, secured four As at A-level today while recovering from major brain surgery during her studies.

Ms Dunthorne, who had a stroke following surgery, which meant she had to learn to write again with her "wrong" hand, said she was delighted with her results for English, History, Latin and General Studies.

Prince Harry achieved a grade B for art and D for geography in his A-levels, St James's Palace said yesterday.