Sharing Good Practice
What is NEASC
Accreditation?
By Chassie Selouane
I
f you are a part of the current 31
schools that associate with the
American Curriculum in Dubai,
by now you have heard about the
formation of the KHDA and DSIB’s US
Curriculum Schools Division and the
requirements that will be put in place
for a school to be categorized as a
KHDA ‘Authorized American School’
in Dubai. The KHDA is putting into
place a requirement for ‘Authorized
American Schools’ to obtain the New
England Association of Schools and
Colleges (NEASC) accreditation by
the 2017-18 academic year. NEASC is
the oldest of the 6 regional accrediting
bodies in the United States. This
requirement has been put in place to
establish and ensure that students are
offered a curriculum that is based on
benchmarked academic standards and
attainment on the same level as their
American counterparts.
Accreditation is the process of
peer review by a non-governmental
organization (NEASC) that evaluates
a school’s operations and success
against established standards of
practice. The standards used for
accreditation are developed and
based on the best practices of good
schools and colleges and reviewed
regularly. The NEASC accreditation
process has long been recognized as a
highly effective means of initiating and
maintaining schools’ improvement and
alignment with a rigorous set of public
standards. NEASC accreditation is
internationally respected as a quality
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seal distinguishing that a school has
met high expectations of educational
quality and content. Earning the
NEASC accreditation gives the
American Curriculum Schools of
Dubai a source of credibility to the
individual school’s curriculum and
diploma programmes, equating the
school’s performance with that of
American based schools.
Accreditation is very different from
inspections. Inspections are annual,
mandatory visits from government
officials and focus on the effectiveness
and success of a school’s self-stated
outcomes in progress, attainment,
learning skills, and socio-emotional
development of the students.
Accreditation is a voluntary process
and the site visit is a peer review process
that takes place in phases. In order for
the Accreditation to be successful, all
stakeholders (administrators, faculty,
staff, students and parents) must be on
board with the process and be willing
to grow, develop, and evolve into
an even more efficient and cohesive
learning establishment.
The first stage is a preliminary visit from
NEASC. In this visit the representatives
establish the standards that will be
assessed and determine if a school
is ready to begin the accreditation
journey.
The second stage is a comprehensive
self-study that is a 12-18 month
Class Time
process. In this phase the school
participates in an in-depth selfevaluation of their school. The school
measures itself against each of the
standards that have been established
during the visit by the accreditation
preliminary team.
The third stage is a site visit. The
visiting team is chosen by NEASC
and visits the school to determine
first hand if the school has met the
established standards set forth in the
preliminary visit. If the school meets
the standards then they are granted
NEASC Accreditation.
After accreditation is granted there is a
follow up self-report in two years, and
a 5-year Renew visit. The entire cycle
is a 10 year process that in the end
ensures schools are offering tangible
and observable evidence of alignment
to standards and are dedicated to
promoting the core principals of
the school’s: Guiding Statements,
Teaching & Learning, Governance
& Leadership, Faculty and Support
Staff, Access to Teaching & Learning,
School Culture & Partnerships and
Operational Systems.
Once schools have gained NEASC
accreditation, the KHDA can be
assured that these schools are offering
a curriculum that meets or exceeds the
requirements of their counterparts in
the United States.