How to recognise strong teaching quality in a British international school

When you visit international schools in Vietnam, it is easy to focus on what is visible. Facilities, class sizes, displays on classroom walls. These matter. But they do not tell the full story of teaching quality. 

The harder question is this: how can you tell whether learning is genuinely strong once your child is sitting in the classroom every day? 

Lee Falconer, Head of Secondary at British International School Hanoi, believes the answer lies in what teachers do minute by minute, lesson by lesson. 

 

What strong teaching looks like in practice 

“Every lesson, teachers are keeping track of student progress by adapting responsive teaching practices, circulating in the room, targeted questioning, reviewing student work, looking for misconceptions, providing hinge questions throughout every lesson to check for student progress and student understanding.” 

Strong international school teaching is not passive delivery. Teachers are constantly checking for understanding with every student. They adjust explanations. They test whether foundational knowledge is secure before moving on. There’s no point in building a beautiful house if its foundations sit on sand – the same is true when students are learning. By ensuring key concepts and foundational knowledge are secure, teachers can then be confident that students are ready to move on to the next step in their learning. 

Open-ended tasks at the end of a unit also serve as important checkpoints. These allow teachers to see how well students can apply knowledge independently. They reveal misconceptions that may not surface in a short test or a retrieval question. 

Students are sometimes asked to teach concepts to one another. As Lee explains, “If you can teach something, you have to know it really well.” When students explain ideas clearly to peers, teachers gain valuable insight into their depth of understanding. 

This is teaching effectiveness in action. It is visible in the rhythm of a lesson, not just in exam results. 

 

How progress is monitored beyond tests 

Tests remain one part of assessment, but they are not the only measure of student progress. 

At BIS Hanoi, we track progress regularly, building a clear and consistent set of data that teachers review holistically, both within and across subjects. This happens week by week and month by month. The academic and pastoral teams review this data together to identify students who may benefit from additional support. 

“All of our students’ progress is mapped against their CEM data from Cambridge, which provides us with a really robust insight as to where they should and what they should attain at the end of each key stage,” Lee explains. 

At BIS Hanoi, every student benefits from an online assessment from CEM, the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring at Cambridge. This adaptive, online assessment is designed to identify student strengths and weaknesses early, providing a benchmark to track progress and guide teaching strategies. It helps the school and teachers understand each student’s starting point and measure progress against it over time.   

This benchmarking provides clarity. Teachers can see whether students are on track relative to their starting points. If not, interventions are put in place early. 

Alongside academic tracking, students in our upper year groups complete a regular pastoral pulse check survey. This helps staff identify issues that may affect learning before they escalate. Academic rigour depends on student wellbeing. Monitoring both allows for earlier, more precise support. 

 

How parents see the evidence 

Strong teaching standards should not be hidden behind internal systems. Parents need clarity. 

At the British International School Hanoi, every student participates in two TutorConnect meetings each academic year. These are student-led conversations with parents, supported by teachers. Students share their progress, strengths, and areas for development. 

This structure builds accountability. It also develops student ownership of learning. 

In addition, every year group has a face-to-face parent teacher conference. At the end of each term, progress data shapes formal reports issued to parents and students. Before reports are sent home, students write their own reflections. 

“All of our students write a reflection on their report before it’s sent home to their parents,” Lee notes. “This is very much something that’s owned by the student. By taking ownership of their learning, students are empowered to make even greater progress over time.” 

For parents who are evaluating teaching quality, these structured moments matter. They provide consistent insight into how teaching standards translate into measurable progress. 

A clearer way to judge teaching quality 

Facilities impress and marketing materials persuade, but teaching quality is revealed in daily responsiveness, structured monitoring, and transparent communication. 

When teachers adapt in real time, use data intelligently, and involve students in reflecting on progress, learning becomes visible. 

For families exploring international schools in Vietnam, asking how progress is monitored, how teacher performance is reviewed, and how students are supported when they fall behind may be more revealing than any brochure. 

At the British International School Hanoi, the aim is simple. Teaching standards should be clear not because they are claimed, but because they can be seen in practice. 

If you would like to understand more about how progress is tracked across different stages of learning, our academic team welcomes conversations that explore how teaching quality supports long-term pathways.