Parents who choose to send their child to a British School Overseas (BSO) do so for quality assurance of a British education, one which promises the highest of standards but also comes at a cost – as high as 20,000 pounds sterling per year. In government-maintained schools in England, which are free, it is a safeguarding requirement to employ qualified teachers (DfE, 2022). However, in international schools, alarmingly, it is recognised that while everyone working as a teacher should be qualified, not all staff members being employed as teachers (and school leaders) are qualified (Kissock, 2017).
Axiomatically, evidence suggests that there is a correlation between the quality of teacher preparation and the quality of education provided by teachers and school leaders (Australian Government, 2021; Lynch, 2019). It can be presumed, therefore, that British schools promising the highest of standards not only implement the National Curriculum for England but also employ qualified teachers. However, the findings from a recent Council of British International Schools (COBIS) large-scale research project, based on 1,600 surveys from senior leaders and teacher participants in British International Schools, found that 43 per cent of senior leaders believed there was a need for Initial Teacher Training qualifications to train local and international staff (such as international qualified teacher status, iQTS) (COBIS, 2022, p. 17). Hence, in the big business of international education, questions are being raised about quality assurance, standards and qualifications.
The UK Department for Education (DfE) provides standards for British School Overseas (DfE, 2023). The Education Development Trust, Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) and Penta International are organisations approved by the British government for the purpose of inspecting schools overseas and are quality assured by the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted). The inspection and accreditation of a BSO supposedly offers evidence that the international school meets nine standards; importantly, this includes ‘Part 4: Suitability of staff and proprietors’, where all teachers must meet the host country’s employment law and are suitable to work with children (DfE, 2023). The host country’s requirements for foreign teachers being employed take precedence over any other requirements – an example is in Egypt where to comply with Egyptian employment law, successful applicants must have qualified teacher status (QTS) and a minimum of three years’ teaching experience post-QTS.
