On October 27, 2016, the Nazarbayev Intellectual School of Physics and Mathematics in the city of Astana received a certificate of accreditation from the Council of International Schools (CIS). School accreditation serves as an indicator of quality and is essential for the entire NIS team. To maintain its status, the school must undergo a re-accreditation procedure every five years.

On September 20, 2021, representatives of the Council of International Schools (CIS) began work on a preliminary comprehensive assessment of the activities of the Intellectual School. An accreditation team of Chris Durbin, Heather Bell and Daniele Vasile will assess the school’s ability to change, self-study and continual improvement from September 20-24.

The virtual visit on the Microsoft Teams platform will include class visits and meetings with teachers, excursions to study areas and self-assessment workshops. Based on the results of this work, the CIS team will submit a recommendation to the accreditation agency.

“We were looking forward to our virtual visit to your school. This is an important moment for cooperation between CIS and NIS, as you are in the first stage of re-accreditation and are one of the flagship schools in the NIS network. Despite our virtual visit, we will be able to feel the energy that students and staff bring to NIS. We hope to capture it with the help of modern technology and become part of the virtual shanyrak. The purpose of the preparatory assessment is for us to do the analysis with you and for your benefit. Our methodology is end-to-end observation and examination of the evidence base. Your strengths are only important when they relate to understanding why they are strong. This is an opportunity to see how NIS is contributing to the world of international education, ”says Chris Durbin, CIS Chief Vice Principal for School Support and Evaluation.