Continuous Improvement in B.C. Independent Schools

On July 1, 2025 the Continuous Improvement Plan Order Authority: Independent School Act, sections 4 (1)(c) and s. 6 came into effect for B.C. independent schools in the 2025-26 school year.

Background and Purpose

The Ministry of Education and Child Care (“the Ministry”) has been engaging with the independent school sector to expand the scope of Ministry inspections of independent schools to support an increased focus on schools’ continuous improvement planning efforts to enhance student learning and well-being. The goal was to create a common framework, expectations and procedures to support productive, efficient conversations related to continuous improvement in schools.

This work was informed by learnings from the Framework for Enhancing Student Learning (FESL) Policy and the Enhancing Student Learning Reporting Order Authority: School Act, sections 81 and 168 (2) (t) that were initiated in B.C. public school districts in 2020. The work additionally took into consideration the unique attributes and contexts of both independent schools and First Nations independent schools.

In 2022, the Ministry formed an Independent Schools Continuous Improvement Project (ISCIP) Working Group comprised of sector representatives to support this work.

In 2023-24 the Ministry and the Working Group piloted and developed a Continuous Improvement (CI) cycle for independent schools, consisting of five stages (Plan, Implement, Monitor/Adapt, Evaluate and Share). The CI cycle encourages and supports the use of relevant local measures and results (qualitative and quantitative) in conjunction with provincially collected data to inform local planning efforts and support evidence-informed and school-based decision-making.

In 2024-25 the Ministry developed an Inspector’s Order – the Continuous Improvement Plan Order – and the Continuous Improvement in Independent Schools Policy to be implemented in the 2025-26 school year. 

Summary of Continuous Improvement Planning Process

The Ministry expects all independent schools to engage in continuous improvement processes that focus efforts on student learning and well-being. Independent schools will design a data-informed CI plan that reflects the stages described in the Ministry’s Cycle of Improvement for B.C. Independent Schools; or provide a summary of the school’s participation in the First Nations Assessment and Certification process.

A school’s CI plan will be presented and discussed at each independent school inspection. Schools are encouraged to extend their planning beyond one school year. During the plan’s initial design, schools are expected to utilize the data available to them at the time of designing a plan. Once developed, a school’s CI plan is intended to remain in effect until the end of its proposed cycle.

A school in the middle of its CI cycle during an inspection would summarize its plan and provide an update during the inspection that includes outlining emerging observations and possible changes to its initial planning.

As the school implements various goals and strategies and as student learning and well-being are impacted, it is expected that a school’s ongoing data analysis may precipitate a need to adjust or change goals/strategies/timelines as it monitors progression throughout the cycle, as new data becomes available or as changes arise. The plan does not need to be revised in its entirety. Ongoing adaptations are expected to be part of the CI cycle.

The Ministry recognizes that all schools will be at different places in their work within their CI cycle during inspections. It is not expected that a school will provide evidence of having fully actioned each stage of the cycle at each inspection. However, at each inspection, a school team will be asked to share the school’s CI plan and to report on the school’s continuous improvement efforts in relation to the Ministry CI cycle and its school-designed plan. If the School has launched and is engaged in its cycle, the school should be prepared to share its plan, steps taken and intended adaptations and actions in future stages of its CI cycle.