Accreditations

Virtual Accreditation visits

The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence; it is to act with yesterday’s logic.” – Peter Drucker

During these extraordinary times IIF will work with schools to conduct an accreditation visit in a virtual manner.

The accreditation process will rely on extensive and effective communications between the host school and the peer assessor. With careful preparation, a virtual accreditation visit can be as effective as an on-site visit and can result in a high-quality experience.

We have developed a blended flexible approach will encompasses all the requirements of accreditation but in a way that suits your individual needs.

To ensure a productive peer assessor visit that fosters a high level of engagement, we have developed protocols that can be followed, as well as best practices that can enhance the virtual visit.

Virtual Visit Guide

  1. Agree a Virtual Accreditation visit date with your Peer Assessor. This will give you a date to focus on and plan for.
  2. Submit your priority action sheets and evidence at least two weeks prior to the visit. Providing the peer assessor with more time to review the evidence has proven to enhance the virtual visit experience.
  3. Agree a platform to view evidence. The evidence can be anything from photographs, feedback forms, leaflets, social media posts, letters, posters, testimonials, questionnaires, reports and lots more. This can be done through:
    • Sending in a video of collated evidence
    • Using Dropbox to provide all evidence
    • E-mailing evidence to Peer Assessor
    • Powerpoint (or similar) presentation of evidence
    • Base room of displayed evidence the assessor can view on the day
  4. Peer Assessors would like to gain feedback by communicating and discussing your achievements with as many individuals as possible. We understand the need to be flexible due to Covid restraints, therefore the following methods could be adopted:
    • Virtual face to face meeting over agreed platform such as Microsoft Teams or Zoom
    • Written feedback in the form of a questionnaire
    • Pre-recorded video
    • Telephone contact
  5. Individuals who may be considered to take part in virtual accreditation are:
    • A lead IiF person or Leadership team
    • Staff involved in activities
    • Governor(s)
    • Parent(s)
    • Pupils
    • Stakeholder(s)
  6. On the day of the Virtual Accreditation visit the Peer Assessor will speak to the IiF Lead person(s) to discuss;  activities, evidence, gain feedback, whole school community, development plans and future goals. Dependent upon points 4&5 above, the Peer Assessor may also then speak to individuals virtually or give feedback on responses already submitted.
  7. As the peer Assessor has already viewed priority action sheets and evidence they will be able to share your accreditation standard with you on the day of the virtual accreditation visit.
  8. Your Plaque and report will be posted to you within 1 week of the virtual accreditation visit. You can then celebrate with your school and community!

Virtual Accreditation Protocol

It would be very helpful if the virtual visit could include pupils and other key stakeholders from within the school.  As always, schools will work closely with your peer assessor on the development of the visit schedule and we are offering various options to suit your individual needs.

Use a school-supported virtual meeting platform

Test the technology with each member of the team in advance of the first meeting and conduct training on the platform as needed.

Ensure that every participant invited to the meetings has an opportunity to contribute to the discussion.

Create a virtual “base room” for evidence to be displayed (if required)

Communication and discussion with the school team prior to the accreditation visit should be top priority

Connections to any on line evidence etc., that may be shared with the peer assessor should be cleared and tested in advance.

If possible, arrange for a virtual tour of the school’s facilities. This could be pre-recorded and shared with the assessor prior to the visit.

Arrange for a virtual assembly in school to enable the assessor to view the school community in its entirety and share a special moment with the school