Exciting news! We’re thrilled to share that Concordia International School Shanghai has been ranked No. 2 in the China International School Innovative Competitiveness Top 50 in the category of schools for children of foreign personnel. We’ve also secured the top spot in the Shanghai region, according to the China International School Innovative Competitiveness Top 100 list released by KingLead Research on Feb. 29, 2024.
“We are honored to be recognized by KingLead as one of the most innovative schools in China. This accomplishment directly speaks to the dedication of our faculty, the curiosity and engagement of our students, and our school community’s commitment to excellence in education,” says Mr. Steve Winkelman, Head of School of Concordia International School Shanghai.
Innovations over the Years
Earning a “5A” rating (Top 1-10) in the rating system is a testament to Concordia’s innovation and achievements over the years. Let’s take a closer look at some of the innovative strides our school has made over the years!
- Established in 2009, Concordia’s Intellectual Hub has attracted world-renowned authors and experts through workshops and the “Concordia Presents” series, offering the community diverse insights from global leaders in various fields, from authors and artists to entrepreneurs and experts in education.
- In 2009, Concordia teacher Mr. Mark Johnson introduced National History Day (NHD), an esteemed academic competition for middle and high school students in the United States, to China. The program has since spread throughout Asia.
- CISSMUN, Concordia’s signature Model UN event, was started by high school teacher Mr. Erik Paulson in 2010. Fast forward, it has succeeded far beyond initial expectations; CISSMUN has become the largest, most highly regarded Model UN conference in Asia.
- In 2012, Concordia pioneered the High School Applied Learning (AL) program, offering college-level experiential courses alongside AP courses. This initiative not only enriches students’ academic journey but also equips them with practical skills for real-world problem-solving. Since its inception, innovative courses have been developed by our faculty such as Social Entrepreneurship, Big Data Analysis, and Business & Finance. In 2022, the Middle School Applied Learning program followed suit.
- The school has hosted the Concordia World University Fair (CWUF) since 2012, which gives students in Shanghai the opportunity to meet with university representatives from higher education institutions from around the world. The event has grown into one of the city’s largest fairs of its time, bringing well over 100 schools to our campus.
- Concordia faculty and students founded the Youth Global Leadership Summit (YGLS) in 2013, attracting students from different parts of Shanghai to annual gathering for leadership growth.
- Starting from 2014, our high school students began to present their work at ICBDE, an international big data conference which is rarely attended by high schoolers. Our students have travelled to Hawaii, Las Vegas, UK, and many other places for these conferences.
- In 2016, Concordia added the Middle School MakerSpace and Culinary Lab to enhance student experiences in applied learning. In 2021 and 2022, we further expanded our STEM facilities with the addition of the High School MakerSpace and the Digital MakerSpace.
- In 2022, Concordia became one of the first international schools in Shanghai to introduce a comprehensive Robotics program across the entire school, covering from Early Childhood to High School education.
- In 2023, Concordia launched the Middle School Wellness program, diving into six dimensions of wellness: spiritual, intellectual, occupational, physical, social, and emotional.
Student Accomplishments 2023-2024
Over the past year, our students have been recognized globally for their research and innovation.
For instance:
- In January 2024, Concordia students Cathy and William’s research project, “Enabling Morphological Analysis of Capacitive Electrocardiography by Dedicated Noise Removal Algorithms,” won the Silver Award at the Korean Science and Engineering Fair (KSEF) out of 134 top teams from around the world.
- In January 2024, Concordia hosted the official VEX International Schools Robotics Competition: Over Under 2023-2024. Our student team made it to the finale and Concordia and SAS Puxi’s alliance ultimately emerged victorious by clinching the championship.
- In November 2023, Concordia student Maxwell secured a top prize at the Global Academician Forum Global Round for his research project “Cubin’ Composers.”
- At the Shanghai International Schools Science and Engineering Fair held in April 2023, Concordia students Shreyas and Marcus won 1st prize for their drone project “Prokyon”, an autonomous industrial pipeline inspection hexacopter.
These are just a few examples of our students' outstanding accomplishments!
