Acceleration of Digital Innovation Activity of Teachers Through the Formats of Participation in Pedagogical Innovation Contests

The article examines the role of pedagogical innovation competitions as a tool for accelerating digital transformation in education. The main attention is paid to the analysis of the Innovation in Education 2023 (IEE 2023) competition, which has become a platform for the development and implementation of pedagogical digital initiatives. The study is based on the methods of content analysis and participant observation. As a result of analyzing the applications of the contest participants, the key factors contributing to the successful implementation of digital educational projects were identified. Among them are motivation of teachers to innovative activities, financial and methodological support, formation of professional communities, as well as mentoring by experts. Contests of pedagogical innovations create favorable conditions for the professional development of teachers, stimulate the exchange of experience and promote the introduction of the latest educational technologies. It is concluded that such competitions function as informal institutions for supporting teacher innovators and play an important role in the formation of the digital education ecosystem in Russia.