International schools are well developed in Shanghai after over a dozen years of steady growth. They offer curriculum education to foreign children, from pre-school kids to senior high school students. There are currently three types of international schools: 1) schools that use curriculum set by the International Baccalaureate Organization, such as Shanghai Community International School and Yew Chung International School. They teach in English and have no restriction on nationality; 2) schools that use the same curriculum as the students’ native country such as the French School of Shanghai, German School of Shanghai, Shanghai Japanese School and Shanghai Korean School. They teach in their students’ mother tongue; 3) the international divisions of local Chinese schools that are qualified to enroll expat children, such as Shanghai High School, Shanghai Jincai High School and Soong Ching Ling Kindergarten. Except the international divisions, the 150 Chinese kindergartens, primary and high schools all teach classes in Chinese.

 

At present, Shanghai is home to 20 international schools of different types. Four are independent kindergartens; 13 are primary schools, junior high schools and high schools; two are schools that offer education from grade 1 up to grade 9 and grade 12 respectively; and seven education centers for expat students. In addition, more than 30,000 expat children from nearly 40 countries and regions are enrolled in the international divisions of five local schools and in the normal classes of 150 local Chinese schools each year.