Education Professionals and Corporate Cited for Outstanding Achievements

Special to TAG Educa News Agency

DUBAI - The winners of the 2018 GESS Education Awards have been announced, honoring outstanding individual as well as corporate achievements and innovations that have significantly contributed to the advancement of education standards in the Middle East.

Trophies were awarded to teachers, schools and education professionals as well as suppliers and distributors in 21 different categories, with winners emerging from a competitive pool of over a thousand submissions. 

The highly sought-after Lifetime Achievement Award, presented in association with Ta’aleem, was given to Ed Goodwin, OBE, citing his long list of accomplishments in the Middle East, which include setting up one of the best British schools outside of the UK, as well as leading initiatives to promote excellence in education in the region. 

Among the teachers, schools and education professionals who were recognized for their various noteworthy initiatives were Aleksi Komu and Sanna Metsälä from Savonlinna Teacher Training School in Finland as well as Hamada Abdellatif  from Al-Amal School for the Deaf / Sharjah City for Humanitarian Services (Best use of ICT / E-Learning in the Classroom); Arushi Madan from Delhi Private School-Sharjah and Lisa Elemor from Dubai International Academy (Ambassador for the Environment); Sirhajwan Idek from Keningau Vocational College (Community Award for Citizenship), Praveena Santosh from The Westminster School, Dubai (Innovation in Education Award); and Bashaer Kilani (Outstanding Contribution in Education Award). 

Other big winners include Kubo Robotics (Start Up Company of the Year), for their revolutionary work in teaching students coding and computational coding in a hands-on context. Classroom Monitor (SME Company of the Year) boasts an assessment product that is now helping 2,500 schools and 50,000 teachers make sense of their data. 
The Multinational Company of the Year Award went to Netsupport which helps teachers, through Netsupport School, maximize technology-led lessons by delivering content, encouraging interaction and monitoring student PCs to improve focus and attainment. 

The Innovation Award for STEAM/Non-ICT products was given to Spaceforme, while Classera Inc took home innovation trophy for E-learning/Software/Apps for their ground-breaking virtual school model that provides access to proper education for children all over the world, especially for those with no access to formal education.

Also taking home trophies were Arte Viva (Early Years Resource/Equipment Supplier of the Year), Literacy Pro-Scholastic (Primary Resource/Equipment Supplier of the Year), Connect and XPO-Wet (Secondary and Higher Education Resource/Equipment Supplier of the Year), Child Early Intervention Medical Centre (SEN Resource/Equipment Supplier of the Year), Edmodo (Best Free ICT / App Product of the Year), GL Education (Best Paid for ICT / App Product), Office Inspirations’ Brody WorkLounge (Best Resource or Equipment Non-ICT), and 5-a day fitness (Best Product to Promote Health and Fitness).

Special Judges Commendation Awards were also handed to Veative Labs for the corporates; as well as to two outstanding education professionals, George Stokes (Head of Innovation at SAFA British School) and Kenya’s Gedion Kyalo (Goodrich Schools Limited).