Announced: 2021’s educational ‘Oscar’ winners

2021’s most exciting, effective new approaches to teaching and learning have been announced by QS Quacquarelli Symonds and The Wharton School, after a gruelling competition comprising eight months, 1350 applicants, and five rounds of close expert scrutiny: the Reimagine Education Awards.

The Queensland University of Technology, QUT Design for Impact winning solution, selected by the Reimagine Education Grand Jury to win the Global Education Award (worth $25,000 in cash funding, sponsored by QS), delivers an innovative interdisciplinary approach. Transdisciplinary ‘Impact Labs’ were introduced across the QUT Bachelor of Design curriculum in 2019. Drawing on stakeholder feedback reflecting shifting employer and global needs, the four units, ‘Place’, ‘People’, ‘Planet’ and ‘Purpose’, aim to future-proof design students’ careers. Labs facilitate the development of students’ theoretical understandings of societal and global issues. Experiential, inquiry-led design challenges undertaken in the labs build students’ core design skills, including transdisciplinary collaboration, networking, and profile-building. The scalable model supports large cohorts and mutually-beneficial industry partnerships, while facilitating ethically-grounded design experiences.

Prof. Margaret Sheil, QUT Vice-Chancellor, commented: “As a dynamic, collaborative and practical university, QUT is very proud of the transformative impact our education and research makes in our communities. The outstanding multi-disciplinary work undertaken by the QUT Design for Impact Team, in collaboration with industry partners and the community, is a wonderful example of QUT purpose in action – to ensure rich and rewarding learning experiences for our students that result in meaningful solutions for real-world problems.”

UBONGO is a Pan-African social enterprise that leverages the power of entertainment, mass media, rigorous research, and kid-centred design to bring effective, localized learning to African families at low cost through the technology they already have. As Africa’s largest classroom, Ubongo provides free edutainment programs on TV, radio, and digital. The educational shows are available in 11 languages in 40 countries, reaching 24.6 million families. The content improves cognitive development, learning outcomes, and social-emotional skills while ensuring every child can experience fun in learning. Ubongo was selected for the Global EdTech Award, proudly sponsored by Google Cloud, and worth $25,000 in Google Cloud credits.

Brian.Study was selected to win the People’s Choice Award. The People’s Choice Award resulted from over 5,000 votes provided by the delegates that attended last week’s Reimagine Education Virtual Conference, ensuring that the voice of the international education community also contributed to the final Awards.  Brian is an early-stage social and competitive app for students
to master exams playfully.

Reimagine Education 2021 shed light on the excellence of innovative solutions enhancing learning outcomes and employability for a future billion learners. In addition to the three overall awards, it rewarded innovation in sixteen main award categories (including AI, VR/AR, e-learning, educational apps and more), six disciplines (arts & humanities, business education, engineering & IT, life sciences, natural sciences and social sciences) and regional awards. Winners hail from 27 countries.

The complete list of winners includes links to the 2’ video summary for each project.

The Reimagine Education Awards are open to edtech companies, universities, schools, and educational non-profits worldwide. Contested by applicants from eighty-four nations, they seek to offer global higher education a platform through which outstanding pedagogical innovation can be identified and rewarded.

Nunzio Quacquarelli, CEO, QS and co-founder of Reimagine Education, said: “At the end of the second disruptive year for global higher education, it has been a pleasure and a privilege to offer a platform to the projects, pedagogies, and solutions that represent the future of educational provision. With over 300 independent judges participating in the evaluation process, plus a distinguished 20 persons Grand Jury, our winners have received the unequivocal backing of expert educationalists across the world. They should take exceptional pride in their achievement.”

Next year’s Reimagine Education Award Competition will open on Monday 21st March 2022. Application is free of charge in perpetuity, and those interested in submitting should register their interest here.