School accreditation

The only sure guarantee of the quality of an international or overseas school is called Accreditation. The process of accreditation normally takes a period of about two years, and includes preliminary inspection, the writing of a self-study, a full inspection by a team of assessors, followed by a final decision by the accrediting agency. Once accredited, the process of accreditation renewal is ongoing.

An alternative to accreditation for a national school is a full inspection by that nation’s inspectorate or equivalent. For example, a US school overseas would seek to be accredited by one of the official US regional agencies (such as WASC), whereas for a UK schools overseas this would be a full ‘Ofsted’ inspection.

Accreditation and inspection are not normally mandatory for international and overseas schools, but are considered essential by schools seeking excellence.

IST has Dual International School Accreditation

The International School of Tianjin is firmly established as one of the premier international schools in China. A significant factor in the development of this reputation has been the school’s efforts and achievements in gaining international accreditation by not just one, but by two of the world’s leading accreditation agencies. IST is accredited both by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in the USA and the Council of International Schools (CIS) in Europe.

School Authorization 

International Baccalaureate Curriculum Authorization

The International Baccalaureate (IB), based in Geneva, is the provider of the most prestigious curriculum for international schools. There are three IB programs, as follows:

•    Primary Years Program (PYP): for students aged 3 to 11 years •    Middle Years Program (MYP): for students aged 12 to 16 years •    Diploma Program (DP): for students aged 17 and above

Schools seeking to teach any of the IB programs must undertake a rigorous process called authorization, which is similar to Accreditation but with a focus on curriculum and teaching standards only. The process of authorization takes approximately 2 years for each IB program.

IST is fully authorized to deliver all three IB programs.

Membership of Regional Organizations

IST is a member of the East Asia Regional Council of Overseas Schools (EARCOS). The school is also an active member of other regional organizations, including the Association of Chinese and Mongolia International Schools (ACAMIS), the International Schools Athletic Conference Beijing/Tianjin (ISAC), and the International Schools Conference of Tianjin (ISCOT).