A quality curriculum is like a forest, a "living" ecosystem in which various elements coexist and interact dynamically with each other. It is rooted in the philosophy, culture, and organisational structure of the school.

At YCIS Shanghai, the integration of the Chinese programme into the school’s bilingual and multicultural curriculum is a benchmark for how Chinese is taught in international schools in China. As Ms Shen further explained, teaching Chinese should be carefully developed and fully incorporated into a school’s curriculum: “Subjects should not be taught as a flat, linear process, but as a systematic, comprehensive, three-dimensional, and sustainable ecosystem.” The excellent progress students at the school make in their Chinese studies, including top international exam results, exemplifies how YCIS Shanghai puts this approach into practice in its classrooms every day.