ACE Learning (International and US-based schools)

ACE Learning is a fundamentally different approach to school accreditation which invites schools to reflect on what actually impacts learning. While traditional accreditation asks schools to take a look at what they do for students, ACE Learning encourages schools to view their learning community as an interconnected ecosystem, where decisions, structures, and behaviors all affect learning in some way.

Read "ACE Learning: An Introduction"

A fundamentally different approach
to school accreditation

Impact

NEASC defines Impact as a long-term transformational change schools wish to see in learners over time. Rather than measuring success solely through outputs such as standardized test scores, university admissions, or summative assessments, we ask schools to broaden their definition of success beyond traditional measures of academic achievement to include their highest aspirations for learners and how learning should illuminate the path to a better world for the next generation.

Approach

ACE Learning brings schools the clarity to focus on a small number of highly impactful priorities. The community's energy can then be concentrated on defining, understanding, reflecting on, and embedding learning as its central purpose. The process is aligned with strategic planning so that learners and learning remain at the core of decision-making.

The framework supports both a school's foundational systems and its capacity to provide transformational learning experiences. It provides structure for a learning community to take a deep, thoughtful look at their core systems, practices, and effectiveness. Schools identify meaningful ways to measure their aspirations, design programs and structures to do so, and ensure resources are in place to achieve their goals. For example:

Using the ACE Learning Principles as a catalyst, the process encourages schools to develop a Shared Understanding of High-Quality Learning.
The process utilizes a transformational continuum to help schools think about effective change processes.
Through the 4 Cs (Conceptual Understanding, Commitment, Capacity, and Competence), schools can identify drivers of change and barriers to change.

Process

ACE Learning follows a five-year cycle that includes a foundations stage, a preparatory phase, a period of internal reflection, and an external review.

While information like curriculum, policies, plans, and procedures may be requested, the ACE Learning protocol prioritizes observation of teaching and learning over extensive documentation that may not accurately reflect practice.

After demonstrating compliance with the Foundation Standards, schools move forward to imagine new ways of supporting deep learning. Using the ACE Learning Principles as both a guide and a provocation, schools explore each principle and assess their progress along the ACE Learning transformational continuum. This reflection helps schools understand how they are shaping impactful learning experiences both inside and outside the classroom.

Cycle

Foundation Standards (report and visit)

The Foundation Standards are the compliance-oriented guidelines that indicate essential, transactional relationships, structures, policies, and systems without which a safe, effective, and sustainable learning community cannot exist. All NEASC schools must evidence strong foundations at the start of their accreditation journey and provide Annual Updates. A thorough review, supported by documentation and a Visit, is conducted every four to five years.

Preparatory Phase (Learning Principles; report and visit)

For schools who are seeking re-accreditation or those deemed eligible to pursue the ACE Learning Pathway during their first accreditation cycle, the ACE Preparatory Phase is the likely next step in the journey. At this point the focus in the report and subsequent visit shifts from the compliance-focused Foundation Standards to the developmentally focused core of ACE: the Learning Principles. As this shift occurs, the language of accreditation mirrors the shift by emphasizing a developmental and transformational process with learning at the center.

In keeping with the NEASC philosophy that “one size does not fit all,” there are several varieties of visits at the preparatory phase, such as whether the school is seeking accreditation for the first time and has recently successfully completed a Foundation Standards Visit or if the school is seeking re-accreditation. The size of the school community may affect the number of days, number of Visitors and type of report(s) that the school will submit. Furthermore, though most visits will be face-to-face, conditions may warrant a virtual visit, adding some additional complexity.

Internal Reflection (4 Cs; report)

The school’s Internal Reflection represents the core of ACE Learning. Following a successful ACE Preparatory Visit, the learning community commits to a year of self-reflection, which culminates in the learning community’s completing an Internal Reflection Report.

After the Internal Reflection Report has been submitted to NEASC, a team of trained peer reviewers will spend one week on site to conduct the External Review. The visiting team’s report includes a recommendation on whether NEASC accreditation should be granted.

The 4 Cs

A key element in each school’s reflection is how the 4 Cs support or hinder the realization of a learning community’s vision:

Conceptual Understanding
Commitment
Capacity
Competence

A learning community’s conceptual understanding of and commitment to the ACE Learning ecosystem as well as its capacity and competency for implementing change will be assessed during the External Review Visit.

External Review (report and visit)

A Visiting Team appointed by NEASC will spend a week with the learning community, engaging in a series of structured conversations to:

verify the process and conclusions of a school’s Internal Reflection
observe learning
understand where the school is on the Transformational Learning Continuum
review recommended actions from previous visits
assess the 4 Cs
prepare a detailed report with recommendations and guidance

Team reports are reviewed by relevant agencies and then sent to the school, with outcome decisions and next steps.

Annual Updates and Substantive Changes

Annual Update

All NEASC Schools are required to submit an Annual Update on or before December 15 of each year. The Annual Update asks schools to update:

key contact information and demographics
updates on the Foundation Standards
updates on Action Plans, Major Learning Plans, Development Plans, etc.

An email is sent yearly to the Head of School. If the Head of School changes please contact cie@neasc.org to update your information. Schools who have a visit within six months of the due date may simply update Section 1 of the report.

Substantive Change

Schools must notify NEASC of any substantive changes not reviewed or considered at the time of their accreditation recognition. These include the addition of new campuses, programs, or modalities (ex: online/blended program). Through a Review Process, NEASC will determine whether the substantive change qualifies for inclusion under the existing accreditation or requires a separate review and/or visit.

Download the Substantive Change Request - Instructions and Form for more information.

Accreditation Pathways

Webinar: A School's Journey Coordinating the ACE Internal Reflection Process

Click the arrow to watch the recording. Leipzig International School shared a detailed account of their experience, including how they structured the process, managed timelines, navigated challenges, and leveraged outcomes for meaningful school transformation.

Recording

Foundation Standards

ACE Learning Principles

ACE Learning isn't the easiest accreditation I've participated in, but I do think it was the most beneficial. Our school has grown tremendously and ACE has been a guiding influence in this change process.

-- Mark Lentz, Former Head of School/CEO, GEMS American Academy, Qatar