Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year

ACCE/ACS Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year

The ACCE Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year award is a national award intended to recognise the importance of the work of Australian teachers who are innovatively employing the Digital Technologies Curriculum in their K-12 schools.

Each state member association has the opportunity to nominate a K-12 school-based educator for the award. The nominee will usually be the recipient of a similar state award. Nominations have to be submitted to ACCE by November 30 annually.

The ACCE Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year award is announced and presented at a national conference where practical.

Recognition

The winner of the Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year Award
→ receives up to $2,000
→ receives a plaque
→ is recognized on the ACCE web site
→ may be invited to present at the next ACCE conference

Selection process

The selection committee for the award will consist of a panel designated by the ACCE Board and will consider the submissions according to the award criteria. The selection committee, where practical, will not contain the ACCE representatives from the states / territories from which nominations have been submitted. The selection committee will be chaired by the ACS representative or a nominee of the Chair of the ACS National Computer Education Committee. Successful applicants may not necessarily fulfill all criteria. Nominees for this national award must address some or all of the criteria for the award.

Eligibility

Nominees must be based in a K-12 school and considered a member of the teaching staff of that school. To be eligible for the awards, candidates must be individual financial members of their state / territory CEG.

Please note: Administrators in schools, district and regional personnel and people attached to offices of school systems also contribute to learning, schools and the professional computer education community; however, this award focuses on recognising the efforts of K-12 classroom-based educators.

Submission process

An electronic copy of a state / territory nomination to the national awards shall be supplied to the Chair of the selection committee by 31 October annually. Submissions for either award should be restricted to six pages only (or equivalent) of printable information with a further four pages of supporting documentation in any media.

Application should include:

Application Form
Nomination Statement (including reference to criteria)
Curriculum Vitae
Letters of Recommendation (minimum of two).

Criteria for selection

Candidates should submit an application that contains a brief curriculum vitae and organizes evidence under the following headings. The evidence should show that the applicant is respected as an educator and innovator at their own institution.

Impact

Significant positive impact on the application of the Digital Technologies Curriculum; locally, regionally, state-wide, and/or nationally
Contribution to the profession by;
- presenting at professional conferences, seminars and/or workshops or
- publishing articles in print or through electronic media
- nurturing and mentoring individuals, groups and /or associations in the use of the Digital Technologies Curriculum

Advocacy

Advocating for the Digital Technologies Curriculum to the extent that their work is used as a model for others
Planning, developing and implementing programs to advance the Digital Technologies Curriculum in Education
Involving the community in an initiative or program to facilitate partnerships around Digital Technologies Curriculum

Innovation

Innovating in the application of the Digital Technologies Curriculum

Lorraine Cusens from QSITE

2019 Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year

Lorraine is the Curriculum Leader for Digital Technologies and Business and the Program Leader for eLearning at Ryan Catholic College in Townsville. Lorraine also fills a sessional Facilitator role for James Cook University’s School of Education. She was nominated for this award by QSITE (Qld Society for information Technology in Education).

Lorraine is an enthusiastic advocate for both the use of ICTs across the curriculum and for the Digital Technologies curriculum. In her own school, her significant contributions include providing classroom support and professional development for her colleagues; planning Digital Technologies curriculum units for use in Prep to Year 6 and Year 7 to Year 10; and ensuring that cybersafety is embedded in school practice. Lorraine also fills the TCE eLearning Guide role for her school and, as a Google Certified Educator, leads and supports her colleagues throughout the school in the implementation of the Google Suite.

Lorraine’s initiatives at Ryan Catholic College extend beyond the boundaries of her role. She has provided students with numerous opportunities such as CodeClub, Young ICT Explorers (YICTE), Lego Robotics Challenges and the BEBRAS Computational Thinking competition. She has also encouraged girls to explore technologies through the ‘Girls can Code’ club.

Lorraine is a member of the Executive of the Townsville Chapter of QSITE and leads the QSITE Townsville Digital Solutions Network which provides support for teachers of this new QCAA Senior subject.

Lorraine has always been willing to share her experiences and learnings both with teachers in other schools and with pre-service teachers. She is respected as a leader and innovator in the implementation of the Digital Technologies curriculum both within her own school and in other schools in the Townsville region and ACCE and ACS were pleased to award her the Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year 2019.

Tracy Sleeman from QSITE

2018 Digital Technologies Teacher of the Year

Tracy is the Year 5 and 6 Digital Technologies Teacher, Staff Coach for Digital Pedagogy and Regional Tech Ambassador at Golden Beach State School. Tracy has also recently taken on a part-time lecturing role in a Digital Communications subject at the Australian Catholic University. Tracy was nominated for this award by QSITE (Qld Society for Information Technology in Education).

Tracy is a dedicated, innovative and enthusiastic educator who has been instrumental in planning the implementation of the Digital Technologies curriculum at her school. She supports other teachers with their planning and co-teaches units at a number of year levels to help her colleagues build their skills. Tracy led the design and resourcing of the school’s Technology Hub and Makerspace. The activities in these flexible learning spaces have a focus on solving problems with various robots including Spheros, BB8s, Ozobots, Osmo coding, Bluebots, Probots and Little Bits.

Tracy collaborates with teachers outside her school through networks such as the Regional Tech Ambassadors and the district Coding and Innovation Hub established by Mountain Creek State High School. She participated in the ACCE 2014 Study Tour, culminating in attending and presenting at ISTE 2014 in Atlanta. Tracy also returned to ISTE 2016 in Denver, Colorado as a presenter.

Tracy has also encouraged student development and engagement through supporting their participation in programs such as Genius Hour, CodeClub, the BEBRAS Computational Thinking competition and the Tech Girls are Superheroes Challenge. Two of the school’s Tech Girls teams have won United Nations awards for their apps, one in 2017 and one in 2018, and Tracy has now taken on the role of Regional Ambassador for the Tech Girls movement.