CAISL is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges and the European Council of International Schools and is recognized by the Portuguese Ministry of Education. CAISL is also an IB World School, accredited for the IB Diploma Program in the last two years of High School. We are the only school in Portugal authorized by the United States Department of State, Office of Overseas Schools.

CAISL seeks to blend the best from the United States model of education with the best from a variety of national systems. All classes place a premium on communicating effectively and learning the skills of finding and analyzing information rather than having the information handed to them by the teacher.

Almost all students go on to university either immediately after high school or after a gap year. This means that CAISL works to challenge student academically. Students are expected to learn how to be responsible, to become giving members of the school community, and to push themselves intellectually. Our academic programs reflect these goals.

Classes in Early Childhood 3, 4, and 5 year olds and Grade 1 are around 20, with a teacher an assistant. In Grades 2 through 12, class sizes average 16 with most classes around 20 but some as small as 5, depending on the subject taught and the needs of the children. English as a Second Language is taught for students in all grades through Grade 10 and at varying levels of fluency.