Dr Sudha Govindswamy, CIS Associate Director of School Support & Evaluation
 

 

All schools are learning organisations. This article examines the building blocks of learning organisations and provides examples of how schools can develop as learning organisations. It also provides examples of how we demonstrate organisational learning at CIS.

Each building block has unique elements that guide the development of learning organisations. As your school community builds its capacity as a learning organisation, the following reflection questions can help it evaluate its progress.

The following essential questions guide our shared understanding of learning organisations: (Kools and Stoll, 2016)

• What are the characteristics of a learning organisation?
• How can a school transform itself into a learning organisation?
• What does this require in terms of the change and innovation capacity of leaders at other levels of the school system?
• What does this require of the governance and support structures within which these schools operate?
• Does the school, as a learning organisation, indeed lead to better learning and/or other outcomes? 

 

Based on an extensive literature review, we adopted the following definition of a learning organisation:

'Learning organisations are organisations where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to learn together.' 
—Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline, 2006

What are the building blocks of a learning organisation?

Building Block 1: A supportive learning environment 

A supportive learning environment is one where every community member aspires to the following ideals: 

• psychological safety
• an appreciation of differences
• openness to new ideas
• time for reflection

Each of the above is interconnected. For example, fostering openness to fresh ideas is effective when each individual feels psychologically safe and when differences and diverse viewpoints are genuinely valued. These ideals should also be tailored to each organisation's specific context. 

How do we exemplify Building Block 1?

1. As an organisation globally recognised for its commitment to the development of socially responsible leadership through international education, we continue to support three strategic growth areas for educational institutions:
   •    Intercultural learning
   •    Global citizenship
   •    Inclusion via diversity, equity, & anti-discrimination (I-DEA) 
   
   Each of the above is highly contextual and should be explored through multiple perspectives and meaning-making to foster a safer, more inclusive learning community. While learning is a continuous process, creating deliberate opportunities for both individual and group reflection is crucial. 
    
2. All CIS members adhere to the CIS Code of Ethics, which outlines the moral principles on which they are expected to base their conduct and professional practice.
    
3. As a curriculum-neutral organisation, we support schools in strategically and operationally promoting inclusive education through the Protocol for developing Socially Responsible Learning Communities.
    
4. The interaction of systems within organisations, along with the key role of ongoing learning, is an important aspect highlighted in CIS schools. This interconnected approach ensures that various components of the organisation work together, fostering a culture of continuous, collaborative learning. It needs to be recognised and accepted that outcomes of complex learning processes are often non-linear, and may have both intended and unintended effects. 

 

'A learning organisation is a place where people are continually discovering how they create their reality and how they can change it.'
—Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline, 2006

For example, as an organisation, we embrace the concept of ‘flearning’—the art of learning through failure (Carlson and Fishbach, 2024). This philosophy views failure not as a setback, but as a valuable opportunity to delve deeper and explore new possibilities. By framing failure as a natural and integral part of the learning process, we cultivate an environment where our colleagues can take risks, experiment, and innovate.

Fostering a sense of social and emotional safety is essential for encouraging open exploration and innovation, and supporting the ongoing growth and development of both individuals and the wider community.

Reflective questions for your school

1. How do you ensure all voices are genuinely heard and valued?

2. How does your community foster psychological safety to approach and support learning in its diverse forms?

 

Building Block 2: Concrete learning processes and practices

Learning processes include: 

• the generation, collection, interpretation, and dissemination of information
• experimentation to develop and test new ideas
• education and training to develop both new and established employees (human capital development)
• a systems thinking approach, that is, a holistic approach that focuses on the way different parts of a system interact and how they influence one another within a whole

How have we developed data-informed & concrete learning processes at CIS?

Establishing data-informed, concrete learning processes has been pivotal to the continual advancement of the Learning Communities Protocol. We engaged in comprehensive SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) and PESTLE (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental) analyses. This analytical work, conducted over two years, provided a strong foundation for evidence-based decision-making throughout the organisation.

In 2018, the CIS Board of Trustees and Leadership Team crafted a strategic approach to gain recognition for schools that achieve CIS International Accreditation, advancing this goal one country at a time. This enabled us to tailor our engagement with government agencies, ensuring relevance and responsiveness to each unique national context.

The use of various analytical frameworks has become integral to our organisational planning. By systematically examining internal and external factors, we proactively identified potential risks and challenges that may affect our member schools and universities as well as the organisation more broadly. This approach ensures that emerging issues are addressed in a timely and strategic manner, supporting the resilience and adaptability of CIS schools, universities and the broader CIS community.

Through collaborative efforts, we began systematically identifying factors that could influence education in the future. These considerations helped guide our efforts to maintain agility and relevance in an increasingly complex and unpredictable global environment (often described as BANI—Brittle, Anxious, Non-linear, and Incomprehensible).

The role of research & iterative refinement within the innovation cycle

The process of experimenting with new ideas and fostering innovative thinking has been firmly supported by a robust and continually expanding research database.

For instance, we adopted the OECD Innovation Cycle as a lens for schools undertaking the CIS International Accreditation process, drawing on research that reflects international leading practice.

This evolution has been informed by OECD research and other sources exploring innovation, particularly in guiding how schools can effectively measure innovation.

A key factor in this refinement process was the invaluable contribution of 35 schools, the first cohort to undertake the CIS International Accreditation Framework for developing socially responsible learning communities, launched during the first half of 2025.

Their active participation exemplified our commitment to transferring learning into practice and to keeping feedback and feedforward loops active and productive.

This engagement ensured that the ‘Learning Communities Protocol’ remained responsive, relevant, and continuously improved, rooted in both research and practical experience. As a result, the application of the Innovation Cycle was updated later in 2025.

Learning organisations & systems thinking
 

'At the heart of a learning organisation is a systems thinking approach to problem solving. And the realisation that we have agency to facilitate meaningful change.' 
—Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline, 2006

A systems-thinking approach is foundational to how we operate, with a strong emphasis on the interactions of systems within the organisation and on promoting organisational learning. 

These principles are clearly demonstrated through regular community meetings, for example, during focus group discussions with members of the CIS community, and during the CIS Summit of University and School Leaders. This process nurtures systems thinking, ensuring that all members contribute to and benefit from collective learning and understanding.

Reflective questions for your schools:

3. How do different systems within your organisation interact effectively to promote the culture of a learning organisation?
4. How does your organisation support and include experimentation to develop and test new ideas towards nurturing human capital? 

 

Building Block 3: Leadership that reinforces learning

Leaders signal the importance of spending time on knowledge transfer and reflective practice

Leveraging Expertise at CIS: The Role of the School Support and Development Team

A significant contribution to the ongoing development of the CIS International Accreditation protocol has emerged from the strategic harnessing of the School Support and Development Team's extensive knowledge and expertise.

By conducting school visits across 120 countries where our member institutions are represented, our team has collected a wealth of insights and data.

This process has greatly enhanced our understanding of the diverse educational contexts in which our schools operate. The information collected has proven invaluable, directly informing and shaping continuous protocol refinement.

The practical experience gained through these visits ensures our protocols remain relevant and responsive to the specific needs of schools in our global community. This ongoing engagement fosters an environment in which knowledge is actively shared within our organisation.

The ability for teams to collaborate, co-create understanding, and revisit their shared purpose is essential in cultivating this approach. By building a shared language and encouraging internal knowledge transfer, we support the development of a cohesive organisational culture.

To facilitate reflective thinking, our School Evaluation and Development Team engaged in an exercise to generate Impact Statements.

Applying the Diamond 9 tool (a prioritisation tool we use in the CIS Pedagogy Playbook to support schools and school leaders in their pedagogical decision-making), we adapted the tool to measure the impact of engaging with schools in the ‘Learning Communities Protocol’.

Our goal was to identify points of divergence and convergence. We then used these emerging themes to create Impact Statements. Here are a few examples generated by our teams: 

 

'Establishing rapport with the leadership team fosters confidence and trust that is essential to developing a constructive and collaborative working relationship. Open and transparent discussion facilitates the co-creation of the Accreditation Plan.'
—Helena Sobulis, CIS International Accreditation Advisor

 

'A solution-oriented attitude allows me to showcase adaptability and leadership in supporting school leadership teams with decision-making about their Self-study journey or about evaluation team composition. This is strengthened by leveraging interpersonal skills that foster a relationship of trust, transparency and openness, making it easier for them to openly share challenges or concerns, and for me to support in every unique situation. "Other Tools" = active listening and probing questions.' 
—Leila Khan, International Accreditation Coordinator

 

'Through strong interpersonal skills and the building of trust, senior leaders invite the evaluator to engage in and contribute to authentic leadership activities, for example, sitting in on a typical weekly senior leadership team meeting, which digs into the current achievements, the weaker areas of the school and the challenges which the school is experiencing. At its most successful, the evaluator can see firsthand how leadership drives school improvement, offering reflections and recommendations when invited to.' 
—Heather Bell, International Accreditation Adviser

 

'Through clear communication, adaptability, and solution-oriented thinking, I build meaningful connections with Heads of School and Accreditation Coordinators, enabling me to understand their unique contexts and challenges and guide them efficiently through their accreditation journey to maximise their learning experience.' 
      —Mariann Toth, International Accreditation Coordinator

 

'Collaboration, Communication and Interpersonal Skills—To build a sense of safety, trust and communication allowing leadership to openly reflect, share, take risks and consider suggestions or new directions with a view to school improvement.' 
—Steve Kotanen, International Accreditation Adviser

 

'Supporting a school through change starts with clear communication and common language, which can lead to a collaborative approach to problem-solving, an honest exchange of ideas, and an opportunity to create a safe space for growth.' 
Celia Gonzalez Pascua, International Accreditation Coordinator

Reflective questions for your school:

5.    How does your organisation make the time and space for knowledge transfer and reflective practice? 
6.    Do the impact statements resonate with you and your school community?

Conclusion

The introduction of the Learning Communities Protocol for developing Socially Responsible Leadership demonstrated a clear, structured approach to iteratively refining both ideas and processes. This approach encompassed the generation, collection, interpretation, and dissemination of ideas throughout the organisation and fostered organisational learning at various levels.

Ongoing efforts to gather and analyse feedback, through surveys and focus group discussions, played a crucial role—not only in collecting meaningful information but also in supporting a data-informed approach to continuous improvement.

Drawing on the work of Senge et al (2006), we recognise that a true learning organisation must possess both adaptive capacity and generative capabilities. This means not only responding effectively to changes but also proactively creating alternative futures, positioning us to lead and innovate as a learning organisation, as we continue to shape the future of international education. 

 

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References

Carlson, R. and Fishbach, A. (2024) Learning From Failure. The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, 2024 (10:160–170).

Dweck, C. S. (2006) Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.

Edmondson, A. C. and Lei, Z. (2014) Psychological safety: The history, renaissance, and future of an interpersonal construct. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1 (1: 23–43).

Framework for Change - The Systems Thinker (Pegasus Communication–1995)

Is Yours a Learning Organization?

Kools, M. and Stoll, L. (2016) What Makes a School a Learning Organisation?, OECD Education Working Papers, No. 137, OECD Publishing, Paris.

Senge, P. (2006). The Fifth Discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization. Random House Books.

Systems thinkers in action: moving beyond the standards 

Turning Good Intentions into Educational Capital (December 2006). 

Vincent-Lancrin, S. (ed.) (2023), Measuring Innovation in Education 2023: Tools and Methods for Data-Driven Action and Improvement, Educational Research and Innovation, OECD Publishing, Paris.

What Is Systems Thinking? Peter Senge Explains Systems Thinking Approach And Principles–Mutual Responsibility

What is a Learning Organization? Peter Senge's 5 Key Principles Explained

 

What questions does this blog answer?

• What are the characteristics of a learning organisation?
• How can a school transform itself into a learning organisation?
• What does this require in terms of change and innovation capacity at different levels of the school system?