By Dulat Irzhanov, Deputy Director, Experience Dissemination Department, Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools (NIS)

On February 16, 2024, one of thousands of Huawei MateBooks stopped being just a laptop. From that day it became mine and received a unique name: Dulat’s MateBook. Together with it began a journey that, after 1 year, 5 months and 29 days, led to a message appearing on that same laptop: “Congratulations on successfully completing the CIS Evaluation Team Leader training.” But for me, the most important part was not the title itself, but how this path and the people along the way shaped me.

To understand why this moment was so special, I need to return to the very beginning — my first team visit in Vietnam. It was my first big trip abroad. I had never flown such a long distance before. The emotions were overwhelming: a new country, a CIS accreditation, synchronized with an IB authorization visit. For a newcomer like me, it all seemed far too big.

It was there that I was struck by how CIS magically turns accreditation into an experience of growth rather than a test. Even a newcomer can feel like an expert. I felt as if my Team Leader was with me 24/7. He quietly checked whether I understood the task, explained, supported, and guided me. On the third day, we went for an early morning run in Ho Chi Minh City. He was about the same age as my father, who had passed away two years earlier. I told him he reminded me of my father, both in age and a little in appearance. He didn’t believe me, so I showed him a photo. He looked at it and smiled. He was so full of energy, which also reminded me of my father. During that run he said: “You are doing really well. I think your father would be proud that you have become such an expert.”

I never forgot those words. At that moment, I truly felt that I was being seen not as a newcomer, but as a full member of the team.

Then came new countries and new schools. Each of them opened a different picture of the world. In one school, the key value was the concept of an Educational Village, where the number of students was intentionally limited so every child could feel part of a close, supportive community. In another, the focus was on the Boarding School format, with children from many different countries and cultures, hundreds of kilometers away from home, living in a beautiful and nurturing environment. In a third, a strong team of IT specialists combined technical knowledge with school management and child psychology. They built a digital environment where students learned mindfulness while also feeling safe - both online and in real life.

Each visit deepened my conviction that every school has its own path, its own focus, its own challenges and its own hopes. This is the real strength of CIS accreditation: helping schools grow in what matters most here and now, in their own unique context.

Every Team Leader I worked with had their own style. One was academic and strict, a true scholar. He always carried his iPad, asked precise questions and noticed details I would have never paid attention to myself. At times it felt excessive, but it taught me discipline and accuracy. Another was a strategist. During a walk he could have a casual conversation with school leaders and within minutes identify key growth points. His ability to so quickly grasp what a school really needed for its future development always amazed me. And the third was a master of communication and emotional intelligence. He created an atmosphere of ease, found the right words of support, and inspired the team to work together. What impressed me most was how he engaged with people in the school: asking teachers and students with genuine curiosity, sharing stories, joking, and building authentic relationships. The school felt close to him and trusted him completely. I remembered each of these moments as role models, which is why each of them became a benchmark for me.

Even after all that, the strongest realization came on the flight back from my very first visit. I understood that this was not an easy mission. It was true volunteer work. People were leaving their jobs, taking vacation at their own expense, spending a week away from family, all to help a school in another country. Alongside respect, I felt a deep sense of value in this work: this is what accreditation truly means.

I also noticed that the most important moments didn’t happen in school, but in the evenings. Team dinners after long days. When everyone was tired, but around the table came open discussions: opinions, arguments, honest reflections. Those evenings taught me the most important lesson: expertise does not come from reports, it comes from dialogue. That is where you learn to connect principles with practice, to change your views, to listen and to trust.

For me, being a CIS Accreditation Evaluation Team Leader is not a title or a duty. It is a new dimension of responsibility. It means being able to coordinate, to mentor, to see strategy, and above all to listen.

One simple phrase I first heard within CIS has since become my mantra: No one wants to fail.

When I received the message about my new status, my first thought was: “Am I really part of this movement?” The imposter syndrome was there. But then that mantra came back to me and helped me overcome my doubts. I realized that I am now truly part of the global process of school development. That I represent Kazakhstan, Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools, and our shared vision of education within the international school community.

For me, this is the beginning of a new path. I will continue to invest my energy to grow in this area. And I see it as essential to move toward forming a community of educational leaders in Kazakhstan. A community where teachers, principals, and education managers can share experiences, understand each other more deeply, debate, seek answers, and develop together. Such a community will become a space for open conversations and collective problem-solving. Over time, it can grow into a movement of enlightenment, one that our predecessors once dreamed of, and one that we can build today.

All these reflections I recorded on my laptop, which over a year and a half has become not just a tool, but a witness to this journey. With it I build dashboards faster, see data more clearly, and connect more easily with people and ideas around the world. The laptop doesn’t do the work for me, but it makes me stronger. And recently I realized that CIS does the same for schools. It doesn’t transform them overnight. It helps them clarify their mission, move forward faster, and achieve results more effectively by connecting with people and ideas around the world.