Entries open for 2026 iStore Education Excellence in Education Awards

Image source: gpointstudio from Magnific.com

Now in its 18th year, the competition is open to primary school learners (Grades R–7) and high school learners (Grades 8–12), alongside their educators. This year’s entrants are required to respond directly to the prompt: How have you used Mac or iPad to bring learning to life?

To incentivise classroom innovation, winning teachers and students in the primary school category will each receive the latest iPad, while high school category winners will receive the new MacBook Neo.

Judging criteria and tech integration

Submissions will be evaluated across three core educational categories:

• Creative Excellence: Recognising original uses of Apple tech to enhance student engagement and memory retention.
  
• Curriculum Excellence: Celebrating the seamless integration of Mac or iPad devices into daily lesson plans to make academic concepts interactive.
  
• Tech Excellence: Honouring classrooms leveraging coding, artificial intelligence (AI), or advanced digital tools to build computational thinking skills.

Michelle Lissoos, director at iStore Education, emphasises that the awards focus on pedagogical purpose rather than the mere adoption of hardware:

“The Excellence in Education Awards have always been about recognising the people behind meaningful digital learning,” says Lissoos.

“Technology has the greatest impact when it is used with imagination, purpose and a clear educational goal. Each year, we’re inspired by the teachers and students who show us what is possible when creativity, critical thinking and collaboration come together in the classroom.”

Submission formats and deadlines

The awards accept entries across various digital mediums, including AI-led projects, coding inventions, digital storytelling, and curriculum-based showcases.

Projects can be submitted either as an individual or a group effort, with a strict maximum of one teacher and two students per entry. Submissions must be formatted as either:

• An MP4 or MP3 media presentation lasting up to three minutes.
  
• A digital eBook spanning up to 10 pages.

Every entry must include explicit evidence of Mac or iPad usage, high-quality media assets, student and teacher credits at the start, and a comprehensive resource list acknowledging all apps and sources used.

The final deadline for online submissions is 2 October 2026. Educators requiring technical guidance or project tips can contact the support team via az.oc.erotsi@noitacude, or view full entry parameters at education.istore.co.za/excellence-in-education.