Accreditation matters

Hong Kong Academy explains what accreditation is and why it’s so important when choosing a school.

International schools around the world engage in accreditation processes to ensure they meet high standards of quality and effectiveness, and that they are providing students with a world-class education. Accreditation provides an external validation of a school’s strengths and identifies areas for further development ensuring that the school is engaged in a continuous process of growth. Students from accredited schools exhibit strong knowledge, skills and attributes, and are sought after by universities as they are likely to do well academically. 

Each accrediting body has a robust set of standards, principles and practices that cover all aspects of school life, including governance, leadership, curriculum, assessment, wellbeing, staffing, home/school partnerships, and more. At Hong Kong Academy, we are accredited by the International Baccalaureate (IB), the Council of International Schools (CIS) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), and are typically re-evaluated every 5 years. Our most recent review cycle began with a preliminary review of our programmes, structures and processes in the 22-23 academic year, followed by visits from evaluation teams during the 23-24 academic year.

IB re-authorisation and commendations 

HKA was first authorised for the PYP in 2004 with DP and MYP authorisation coming later as the school grew. Our most recent IB authorisation cycle began with a preliminary review, which was completed over the summer of 2023. In the 2023-24 school year, the school launched its selfstudy, which involved an analysis of the IB Standards and Practices by the Board, leadership, faculty, students, and parents. A thorough data analysis was completed, and the final self-study report was written based on these findings. The IB evaluating team took the self-study report as the basis for their virtual site visit during which they met with many HKA community stakeholders and gathered feedback which was synthesised into their final report. HKA met or exceeded all IB requirements for the three curricular programmes offered at the school, PYP, MYP and DP, and the school received commendations for its mission and values, commitment to educational quality and abundance of diverse, inquiry-based learning opportunities.

Pathway 2 - Global Citizenship 

Thanks to many successful CIS/WASC accreditations in the past, Hong Kong Academy was invited to engage in a newly introduced re-accreditation pathway for our current cycle, known as “Pathway 2”. This allowed us to engage in a deep dive process focusing on a specific area of school development. HKA chose to focus on Global Citizenship and much alike the IB process, stakeholders from across the school community were involved in group-reflection and project work which informed evaluation visits first virtually and then onsite. CIS/WASC final report commended HKA’s leadership for their work in creating a culture of belonging, the whole-school approach to child protection and safeguarding, and the schools ongoing work on inclusion, diversity, equity and access (IDEA).

High-quality, inclusive education 

Hong Kong Academy is committed to providing a high-quality, inclusive education for all learners, that prepares students for success in a global society. The IB reauthorisation and CIS/WASC re-accreditation processes provided valuable data which informed the writing of HKA’s new school-wide strategy which will guide us educationally and operationally for the next 3-5 years. Through strategy we ensure that we continue to meet the highest standards of educational excellence, stay true to our mission and values, think deeply about the services we offer to our students and deliver what we promise. 

Find out more about Hong Kong Academy at www. hkacademy.edu.hk

This article first appeared in the 2024/25 edition of John Catt's Guide to International Schools, which you can read here: