Showcase Awards celebrate excellence in Darling Downs education

Education Minister Grace Grace has today congratulated local schools recognised in Queensland’s 2022 Showcase Awards for Excellence in Schools, with Wilsonton State School named as a Darling Downs South West regional winner and three other schools receiving commendations.  

Now in its 23rd year, Minister Grace said the Showcase Awards are widely regarded as the most prestigious educational awards in Queensland, showcasing excellence in education, innovation, and leadership.

“I’m pleased to announce that Wilsonton State School has won the Network 10 Showcase Award for Excellence in the Early and Primary Years,” Ms Grace said.

“One of the privileges of my job as Education Minister is to meet the outstanding teachers and educators delivering innovative and world class opportunities for our young Queenslanders.

“The Showcase Awards allow us to recognise and celebrate the great work that our schools are doing day-to-day to ensure that Queensland continues to innovate and develop new education practices.

“The quality of submissions for this year’s awards was once again exceptional and extremely competitive, making the task of selecting award winners all the more difficult for the regional judging teams.

“To be named as one of the 27 regional winners, or as one of the 24 to receive a commendation, is a significant accolade for these schools. It’s an important recognition of their contribution to the state’s education system.

“I congratulate each and every one of them, and wish them all the best in the next rounds which will determine our state finalists, and ultimately our state winners.”

Wilsonton State School Principal Joshua Seaniger said he was thrilled for his teaching staff and students for taking out the award.

“It’s an incredible honour for our school to receive this award,” Mr Seaniger said. 

“We are incredibly proud of our work to deepen our teacher’s curriculum knowledge and make learning visible for all through our use of English learning walls.

“Now our teachers speak with confidence not only about their professional learning, but how they apply it in the classroom.”

The below projects in the region also received commendations:

• Network 10 Showcase Award for Excellence in the Early and Primary Years category
  • The Summit State School, Visible Learning
  • Hatton Vale State School, PAGES in Action: Teaching Writing
• TUH Health Fund Showcase Award for Excellence in Inclusive Education category
  • Warwick State High School, Inclusion Journey: A whole school approach to differentiation
  • Wilsonton State School, The Hardest Change, Mindset Change

This year there were 86 submissions for the Showcase Awards state-wide, representing 120 schools. Regional award winners and commendation recipients will share in $66,000 worth of development grants to further support their initiatives.

The 27 regional award winners will be whittled down to a smaller number of state finalists next month, before the overall winners across the 10 categories are announced at a conference in Brisbane in October 2022. Winners will receive up to $10,000.

Further information about the Showcase Awards for Excellence in Schools, including the full list of regional winners and commendations, is available at: https://showcase.education.qld.gov.au/

The 10 award categories are:

• The Network 10 Showcase Award for Excellence in the Early and Primary Years
• The QSuper Showcase Award for Excellence in the Secondary Years
• The TUH Health Fund Showcase Award for Excellence in Inclusive Education
• The RemServ Showcase Award for Excellence in Parent and Community Engagement
• The Showcase Award for Excellence in Global Engagement
• The Queensland Teachers' Union Showcase Award for Excellence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education
• The Showcase Award for Excellence in Rural and Remote Education
• The QUT Showcase Award for Excellence in Teaching
• The Griffith University Jack Pizzey Award for Excellence in School Leadership
• The Bevan Brennan Every Child Needs a Champion Award.

ENDS

Media contact: Kate Talbot, 0439 8023 211