Education In Shanghai

One of the biggest concerns of parents when they learn that they will be relocating overseas is how their children will adjust and be edprucated.  “Will they be happy? Will they be safe? Will they be able to reintegrate when they return home?” These are all questions that parents ask themselves before departure.

What they learn upon arrival in Shanghai is that the city has a wide array of educational choices available including world class schools like the British International School, Shanghai. Parents are quickly comforted with the knowledge that their children will be safe, happy, and well educated.

Primary and Secondary Schooling

Shanghai’s primary and secondary school community boasts programmes with increasingly elaborate facilities and varied academic offerings. For expat families that want an education using a standard international curriculum, Shanghai offers a diverse range of international schools offering International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes. In recent years, these IB programmes have gained popularity with secondary schools thanks to their global appeal and recognition from top universities worldwide. Some of the international schools have a waiting list, but space is growing. However, administrators recommend applying by early March, as most schools begin finalising their rosters at that time. Contact the administration directly to find out if there is space in the specific grades of your children. Most schools do not require an entrance exam, though an assessment may be required for students with nominal English skills. Otherwise, parents and students simply fill out an application form and provide previous school records, medical records, standardised test scores and sometimes a letter of recommendation.

Tips for Choosing a School

Parents who have been through the process before say that finding the right school for your child starts with asking the right questions. In Shanghai, expat families have a variety of schools to choose from. The choices range from prestigious international schools, to international divisions within local schools, to local schools themselves. And no two schools are the same, including the ones with multiple campuses. Institutions can vary in terms of curriculum, facilities, size, cost, location, activities, philosophy and sometimes even in teacher experience.

Before you pick up a single brochure, contact an administrator or set foot on a campus, prepare to get answers to these three key questions: 1) What is the student to teacher ratio, and what certifications do teachers have? 2) How will this school prepare my child for university? and 3) What kind of school environment does my child thrive in?

1) What is the student to teacher ratio, and what certifications do teachers have?

Research throughout the world has consistently indicated that good teachers are the key element of children’s developmental and academic success. Furthermore, quality teachers are able to thrive when the student to teacher ratio is low. Smaller class sizes permit teachers to attend to the needs of each individual student and be innovative presenting curriculum and facilitating learning. Be sure to ask administrators about teachers’ qualifications and class sizes. Follow up by visiting a few classrooms to get a feel for the environment.  

2) How will this school prepare my child for university?

If your child is in high school, then knowing which country your child wants to head to after graduation will help determine which curriculum is best suited for them. Of course, American universities are familiar with the British curriculum and vice versa. The IB programme is recognised worldwide. The American Schools graduate students in Advanced Placement (AP) programmes, positioning them for US universities upon graduation. Students who plan to study in the UK or Asia (other than mainland China) are best served by preparing for and taking IGCSE exams in Year 11. Likewise, though Canadian and Australian students have a bit more flexibility, most parents prefer to educate their children in the British curriculum. The British International School Shanghai (BISS) offers IB options (either the more intensive diploma  programme or the certificate  programme) for years 12 and 13. Of course, an IB diploma is portable and both American- and British-system schools offer the IB programme.

3) What kind of school environment does my child thrive in?

Ultimately, selecting a school comes down to personal taste. It’s tempting to try to generalise, but the fact is a large student body does not automatically mean a school is impersonal. Likewise, a small student body does not automatically mean a school lacks in course or activity options. If you can, visit the school and get a sense of the atmosphere. Read school marketing materials critically to determine their emphasis. Most importantly, talk to other parents. Ask what they like about the school and what they would change. Make the most of your school visit by paying attention to the tone of classrooms as well as general areas, noting interactions between students and teachers and among students themselves.

Here are some additional questions that parents report are helpful when gauging a school:
What is the annual turnover rate of teachers?
What percentage of teachers are certified to teach in their home country?
What IB classes are available? Which are the most popular?
What foreign languages are available, and are students required to study Chinese?
Where do graduates go to university?
What extracurricular activities are available?
What community service opportunities are available?

Universities and Higher Education

Shanghai is the home of a number of China’s most famous universities, including Fudan, a humanities-oriented institution, and Jiaotong, which is renowned for engineering. For locals, the university admissions process is extremely stressful and based solely on nationwide examination results. Foreigners, however, are exempt from these exams. All one has to do to enroll in a Chinese university is fill out a simple application form, submit school records and other documentation, undergo a physical examination and show proof of language proficiency. The majority of expat students choose to study in the US or Europe, but more and more are choosing to study in a Chinese university for a year or more before transferring.

Many international universities have satellite campuses in the Shanghai area, particularly with Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) programmes. The University of Maryland, Washington University, Rutgers Business School and USC Marshall have all established high-ranking Shanghai EMBA programmes. The University of Nottingham’s Ningbo campus offers a range of accredited  programmes. The Institute of Fashion (IFA Paris) has recently opened a branch in Shanghai with French-trained instructors. Jiaotong University’s International Continuing Education Classes can give you the opportunity to dabble in subjects including painting and graphic design.

Language Courses

Whether your life or work requires you to interact with non-English-speaking Chinese people or not, learning some Mandarin can make living in Shanghai an easier, more enjoyable experience. Although English is commonly spoken in the city centre and in the proximity of expat communities, exploring many parts of the city, shopping and communicating with taxi drivers requires at least basic knowledge of Mandarin. If you are keen to learn there are two options. One is to enroll at a university, where the larger and cheaper classes generally focus on reading and writing Chinese characters. The other is to take classes at one of the many language schools, which offer full-time and part-time courses. Classes tend to be smaller and most schools also offer private tutors. Though they are more expensive, language schools tend to be more flexible when it comes to students’ language levels and schedules. Another difference is that language schools often avoid Chinese characters in the introductory levels, choosing instead to teach oral Mandarin using the pinyin system (Chinese written in the Roman alphabet). Oral learning is easier and faster. Therefore, for those in need of some survival Chinese, this is probably the best option.

The British International School

The British International School offers the English National Curriculum as well as the International Baccalaureate Diploma and Certificate  programmes in years 12 and 13. It is the only school in which teacher recruitment (70% of the teaching staff is brought in from the UK), curriculum planning, programme development and parent relations are all managed by experienced British administrators. This advantages are immediately obvious to parents.

British International School  students follow the same academic  programme as their counterparts in the UK and students report a smooth transition, making this school an easy choice for British parents. Canadian, European and Australian parents are attracted to the parity in curricula, while many Asian parents appreciate the system of academic accountability and overall rigour of the British system, evidenced by the school’s excellent IGCSE results. For the 2007-2008 academic year, approximately 45% of Year 10 and 11 students were awarded “A” grades. This is exceptional considering that English is the second language of many students. All students in Years 12 and 13 participate in the IB programme, which provides them a first class preparation for a post secondary education.

In addition to The British International School’s evident commitment to academic excellence, the school is remarkably student-centred. State-of-the-art facilities on each campus offer competitive sports, fine arts and a variety of extracurricular activities, which are designed to match the demands of the student body. Admission to any of the three British International School campuses in Pudong, Puxi or Nanxiang is non-selective and despite the low student-to-teacher ratio, waiting lists are normally not a problem. For more information, visit www.bisshanghai.com.

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