Education is a sector short of accolades. Too often it’s the negative that makes the news with phrases such as “bog standard”, “crisis” and “failure” hitting the headlines while high achievement and dedication rarely make the front page.
But times are changing. The BETT Awards for technology resources have been running for three years, the Teaching Awards are in their third year, the ICT in Practice Awards were held for the first time this year, and the Education Resources Awards (ERAs), are in their fourth year - all fairly new to the scene.
Unlikeother awards, the ERAs offer recognition to individual teachers and schools and the educational supplies industry. Run by the British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA), ERAs recognise the work of the often overlooked sectors within the education industry as well as the more obvious ones.
This year, nominated companies include established names such as SEMERC, Sherston and Oxford University Press, alongside new names such as 2Simple Software and Immersive Technology, both making a splash with their first products.
At the time of going to press, organisers were still counting the votes cast by educational professionals. The full list of voting categories and nominations is: Education Resources: Special Education
Three Bears Furniture - NES Arnold
Percussion Plus Instruments - Percussion Plus
Out and About - SEMERC
Alphasmart 3000 - TAG Learning
Education Resources: Early Years
Infant Video Toolkit - 2Simple Softare
The Early Years Big Board - NES Arnold
Number Train - Sherston Software
Education Resources: Primary
Oxford Literacy Web Anthologies - Oxford University Press
Junior Multimedia Lab - Sherston Software
Fiction Writing Posters - TTS
Oxford Maths Zone - Oxford University Press Citizenship Across and Beyond -
BBC Educational Publishing
Education Resources: Secondary
Black Profile Series - Tamarind Press
Britannic Street - Britannic Assurance
Shakespeare Interactive CD ROM - Educational Communication in partnership
with Lloyds TSB and the Royal National Theatre
geog.1 - Oxford University Press
Inspiration - TAG Learning
Education Resources: ICT
Kar2ouche - Immersive Education
BT ICT@school website - Educational Communications
IntelPlay QX3 Computer Microscope - TAG Learning
Supplier of the Year: under pound;3 million annual turnover
Goodwill Art Service; Sherston Software; Superstickers
Supplier of the Year: over pound;3 million annual turnover Blue point;
GLS; Educational Supplies; Viglen The six other awards, which will be
decided by the judges are: Leadership in Teaching; Educational
Establishment of the Year; UK Innovation Award; Education Exporter of the
Year; Education in Partnership of the Year and the Lifetime Achievement
Award.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony at the Motorcycle
Museum in Birmingham on March 22, the opening day of the show
