Overview

Margot Long, the inaugural executive director, worked with ISASA during 2022 to draft a set of globally aligned Standards & Indicators for quality assurance in schools. Global advice was sought from ICAISA (International Council Advancing Independent Schools’ Accreditation) and from CIS (Council of International Schools) along with several other global agencies. However, it is equally important that these standards recognise the complexity and diversity of independent schooling in Southern Africa.

Draft Standards & Indicators were shared with heads of Southern African schools in June 2022, calling for comment and feedback. In addition, a series of online workshops were held during July to discuss the process with heads.

The pilot programme was completed across a diverse range of 55 schools around Southern Africa, during September and October 2022. Feedback from this process enabled a full revision of the Standards & Indicators for 2023.

During 2023, OISESA completed a further 151 school quality assurance visits. ECD and LSEN schools were included in the programme, bespoke Standards & Indicators developed in consultation with these sectors.

Feedback from the mentors and the 2023 schools enabled further honing and refinement of the Standards & Indicators. The 2024 revisions of all these documents are available under the Resources tab.

OISESA secured an associate membership with ICAISA during August 2022. This has strengthened alignment with global standards and established worthwhile relationships with other global agencies.

ICAISA

“ICAISA values the opportunity to broaden and deepen its connection to organizations that serve independent and international education. ICAISA Associate Members bring value to ICAISA by offering specialized expertise to the field of accreditation within an evolving educational landscape. Becoming an Associate Member of ICAISA provides organizations an opportunity to join in conversations with K-12 accreditors and to increase awareness and understanding of accreditation. Furthermore, Associate Members play an active role in supporting ICAISA in fulfilling their vision to have a transformative impact on the independent and international school landscape by advancing accreditation globally.”