The Leibniz Institute for Educational Media | Georg Eckert Institute (GEI) has presented the ‘Textbook of the Year’ award annually since 2012. The Institute is able, through this award, to recognise and honour publishers and authors who have developed and implemented innovative educational media concepts. The positive feedback we have received over the years from educational publishers, practitioners and the media has underlined the importance of this award. In order to reflect the increasing diversity of educational media used in schools, the award was renamed in 2024 and is now known as the ‘Educational Media of the Year’ award. The term educational media encompasses the entire spectrum of media produced for education in schools; ranging from classic printed media to digital media formats.

The change in name is also accompanied by changes to the application process. The awards for educational media for schools will be presented every two years in three categories, rotating  between three different school levels:

• For primary schools in the categories ‘language’, ‘mathematics’ and ‘primary science/general studies’.
• For lower and upper secondary levels in the categories ‘languages’, ‘society’ and ‘STEM’.

The awards recognise educational media that excel in their fulfilment of current requirements and which demonstrate bold and innovative content choice, didactic methodologies and design as well as those that are able to satisfactorily address digital learning and offer a skills-centred approach to education.  The winning entries are determined during a two-stage selection process involving experts from academia, publishing and educational practice.

The GEI’s aim is to raise awareness of the social significance of teaching materials for schools and to stimulate their continuous development. The award is under the patronage of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the German Länder.