Since 1872, schools offering an education in English and serving the
expatriate community have existed in Japan. Four current JCIS member schools can trace their origins to before the
First World War. The number of schools burgeoned in the 1950s and 1960s. When school representatives met for the first time in October 1965, they discovered that they shared many of the same problems. The Japanese Council of Overseas Schools (JCOS) was established in 1972. At first, membership was only open to
East Asia Regional Council of Overseas Schools (EARCOS) in Japan. In 1982, membership was widened to include any school that offered its curriculum in English. In 1987, the name was changed to the Japan Council of International Schools, or JCIS, to mirror the
European Council of International Schools (ECIS). ==Member schools==