The Origin of NCCT International School Accreditation in China

Abstract

This article is a condensed translation from Chinese of the original PhD thesis by Dr Mo Jingqi and illustrates how international accreditation was introduced in China during a time of rapid government structural change. The article is valuable from three perspectives: first, it provides a rare insight into the means for introducing change in the education system in China; secondly, it describes the evolution of the role of the National Center for Curriculum and Textbook Development, a non-governmental organization, and how it became authorized by the Ministry of Education to implement education policy in China; and thirdly, the idea of transplanting into China a joint accreditation system for international schools is by itself a major historical change, the model of which may one day expand to other types of schools in China. It should be noted that the titles of Chinese references have not been translated as they can be found only in Chinese language. In addition, during those years of rapid change, the titles and roles of many government organizations also changed, including that of the National Center for School Curriculum and Textbook Development (NCCT). It is important to appreciate the challenges of language translation as many of the concepts have different meanings in Chinese and have changed during that time period. This includes the meanings of ‘international school’ and ‘accreditation’.