CIS Membership into Accreditation: The Green Shoots International School Journey

October 6, 2022

In 2019, Green Shoots International School was accredited by the Council of International Schools (CIS) as a Member School. The process for membership accreditation has since been updated to allow for a more simplified entry into the CIS world however in 2018 Green Shoots underwent a rigorous accreditation process including the submission of an evaluative report and concluding with an in person accreditation visit from a CIS team. 

Green Shoots is very proud to have been the first CIS Member School in Central Vietnam and we now continue our journey to become a fully CIS Accredited School. In 2021, ISC Research found that there are now 12,373 registered international schools worldwide (Shaw, 2021). Of these 1,360 are current CIS Member Schools with just over 530 holding full CIS Accreditation status. 

Through our journey to full accreditation, Green Shoots look forward to joining the 4% of international schools in the world who have chosen to be evaluated to the high standards of professional performance in international education and have a commitment to continuous improvement. In particular, the award of accreditation shows that the school:

  • is devoted to its mission and vision for students
  • has thought deeply about the services it offers to students, family and community
  • invests the time and resources for validation from a globally-recognized accreditation authority
  • focuses on the quality of teaching, student learning, as well as student safeguarding and well-being
  • is committed to the development of the students’ global citizenship
  • has a suitable philosophy of education suitable for its students
  • promises only what it can deliver
  • is open to regular evaluation by its own school community and peer evaluators
  • constantly seeks improvement in all areas of the school plans strategically for the future

(CIS, 2022). 

The Council of International School’s Accreditation Domains

What makes CIS Accreditation unique is that undertaking the accreditation process involves the entire school community. As the leader in the field of school evaluation and accreditation worldwide, CIS works with other regional accreditation agencies and organisations offering academic programmes. The process is enriched by the sharing of knowledge and effective practices from around the world, benefiting entire school communities (CIS, 2022).

Our CIS Accreditation Preparatory Visit is scheduled for February 2023 and the visiting team will also run an all staff workshop on the CIS Accreditation process with our staff to offer our team professional development in the accreditation standards. 

In-school professional development will be taking place linked to the CIS process to inform and include all stakeholders. Our October PD day will involve collaborative work on Policy Creation as well as the beginning of a review of high quality learning at Green Shoots.

The Preparatory Report requires our evaluative commentary on all the CIS Domains and Standards as well as a commentary on progress we have made on recommendations from our CIS Membership report in 2019 and planned actions. We are also asked to submit evidence to support all comments made and to rate ourselves for each standard. The Preparatory team then uses this to give us detailed feedback and recommendations to begin the full Self-study process.

As we continue our school journey to CIS Accreditation we will continue to reach out to all members of our community for your input and much valued feedback as we grow together as lifelong learners at Green Shoots International School. 

Matt Buxton

Deputy Head

References

International school accreditation agencies | CIS accreditation. (n.d.). Council of International Schools | International Education Organisation. https://www.cois.org/for-schools/international-accreditation

Shaw, P. (2021, July 26). More than 12,000 international schools in the world. ISC Research. https://iscresearch.com/more-than-12000-international-schools-in-the-world/

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