Awards for teaching excellence: intentions and realities

Two samples of recipients of teaching awards were surveyed in 2002. The first comprised educators from early childhood, primary and secondary schools, TAFE colleges, and universities who had received inaugural New South Wales Minister for Education and Training and Australian College of Education Quality Teaching Awards in 2001. The second sample comprised educators from the USA who had received a variety of awards for exemplary teaching, ranging from local to national levels and from primary to university sectors over several decades. Both samples were asked to respond to a series of open-ended questions exploring the personal and professional consequences of receiving a teaching award, their views on the selection process and criteria employed, how others had reacted to their award, and their views on awards for exemplary teaching generally. The parallel studies revealed both intended and unintended outcomes arising from receipt of an award for exemplary or outstanding teaching practice. Findings are reported and discussed, and implications explored