Studying the New Zealand film Boy is what helped Tauranga Girls' College student Emma Dalton become one of the top Year 9 English students in the country.

Tauranga Girls' College student Emma Dalton, 14, and the gold medal she received for gaining one the top level awards in ICAS English. Photo: Cody Stevens.

The 14-year-old received a gold medal in English from the University of Wales for gaining a first place in the nationwide International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) exams.

She received the award at the weekend at a special ceremony at the Auckland University of Technology.

Emma is the only Year 9 student from Tauranga to receive an award and she was surprised it was one of the top ones.

'I wasn't expecting it really. It was at a lecture theatre, which I have never been in before. We all lined up and walked on stage to receive the medals.”

More than 20 countries, including Asia, Africa, Europe, Pacific and the USA participate in ICAS exam each year.

'Earlier in the year we did a film study of Boy, we got to watch the movie, identify reasons and themes that have gone on and how the director used these themes in the film. I really liked that.”

In the exam Emma was required to read a series of short stories and answer multi-choice questions about them.

Although Emma enjoys English, she says it is definitely not her favourite subject and she plans to pursue graphic design at a tertiary level.