Written by: TSE Man Shun Daniel, Y10 student
One of the unique things about YCIS is its focus on bilingualism. In YCIS Pudong, we emphasise English as well as Mandarin. All primary to lower secondary students have the opportunity to discover about Chinese culture through Chinese Studies and have the privilege to learn Mandarin. When I first arrived here in 2010, the only language I knew was Cantonese. Thankfully, my teachers and classmates helped me adapt. I have grown over the last few years as a good communicator and linguist, having studied English, Chinese and Spanish. Today, I am studying First Language English and First Language Chinese for my IGCSE courses. It is a great challenge, but I believe the school will support me in my learning.
Another one of the unique things about YCIS is the class sizes here are relatively small. Due to the small class sizes, the teachers here are able to nurture and help individual students. Studying here is not like a public school where teachers have to deal with 40 students; it is more like being inside a tutor group. For numerous times, I received help from my teachers. I had the privilege of meeting up with teachers and having one-on-one tutor lessons on anything that I did not understand. If I studied at a school with bigger class sizes, I believe that teachers would not spend as much time helping me.
I really appreciate that YCIS cares a lot for its students.YCIS has not only nurtured my academic abilities, but also my interests. Since I was exposed to a wide range of Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs), I was able to develop my interests. Today, I participate in 5 different CCAs, all of which I am passionate about. YCIS Pudong has recently renovated the Learning Communities in Century Park Campus. This is an area that is very comfortable for primary and IB students to study in. The school also has a child-safety team, consisting of several teachers that are responsible for the wellbeing and safety of students.
It has definitely been a pleasure studying here at YCIS for the past few years. I had the privilege of experiencing the school improve and change. I believe that YCIS is a truly unique school, and I am grateful for the opportunities provided here.