When YCIS Pudong students were warmly welcomed back to school in August, they were delighted by a number of very exciting changes that had taken place over the summer holiday. Several major renovations to both indoor and outdoor facilities changed the landscape and look of both YCIS Pudong campuses.
At the Regency Park Campus, Lower Primary students came back to see a freshly-resurfaced basketball court and stadium lights alongside the pitch which will allow our young footballers to keep developing their skills even after the sun goes down. In addition, after they work up an appetite at recess, the students can now enjoy their lunch in the beautiful cafeteria which saw a complete renovation and expansion over the break. Complete with coffee bar and special café seating that parents are very welcome to use, the new cafeteria is a hub of activity throughout the day!
Just down the road at the Century Park Campus, there were also some amazing changes for our students. For our Year 5 and 6 students, what better way to celebrate moving to a new campus than getting to know their innovative Learning Community environments! The youngsters were delighted when they had the chance to experience and explore these state-of-the-art areas for the first time, as were their teachers. According to the Year 5 Leader, Mr. Jon Banks, “The students are really excited, and the teachers are ready to go and explore this new type of learning and teaching.” The IB students in Years 12 – 13 also moved into a dedicated new Learning Community space this year, and the feedback from students, teachers, and parents has been tremendously positive.
The advantages of the Learning Community spaces include enabling a new way of working and studying for the students and a modern way of delivering classes for their teachers. This is something that was emphasised by YCIS Pudong Co-Principal, Mr Damien Hehir, who shared that the open-plan spaces “support a more collaborative, inquiry-based approach.” Mr Hehir added that, “unlike traditional classrooms, these more-flexible spaces can be re-purposed to suit a wide range of learning activities and student interests.”
YCIS Pudong students also came back to school to see some new additions to the campus, including brand new lockers and incredibly – a double football pitch that was installed by a leader in professional pitch surfaces, as well as professional field lighting. This new outdoor space will host a number of tournaments and events this year, providing our students with increased sporting opportunities in which they may participate.
All of these renovations were made to benefit the entire school community and to improve the learning experience of every YCIS Pudong student. We look forward to another wonderful year ahead.