USAANZ Member Alan Cockerill Earns International Recognition for Translation
The International Federation of Translators has awarded Brisbane translator Alan Cockerill an honourable mention for the Aurora Borealis Prize for Outstanding Translation of Non-fiction literature.
At their triennial congress on 5 September 2025, being held this year in Geneva, Switzerland, the International Federation of Translators have presented several international awards, including awards for the most outstanding translators of children’s literature, fiction literature, non-fiction literature and scientific literature. These awards are presented every three years. Past awards can be seen at: https://en.fit-ift.org/awards/
This year the Aurora Borealis Prize for Outstanding Translation of Non-Fiction Literature was awarded to the French translator Guillaume Deneufbourg for his translation Les rêves d’un Européen au XXIe siècle. 1999-2022 [Dreams of a European in the 21st Century. 1999–2022], a translation from Dutch to French of a work by Dutch historian Geert Mak. In addition to the main award, an honourable mention was awarded to Australian translator Alan Cockerill, for his translations of works by the eminent Ukrainian educator, Vasyl Sukhomlynsky. Alan Cockerill has translated several of Sukhomlynsky’s major works, including My Heart I Give to Children (2016), Our School in Pavlysh (2021), A World of Beauty (2013), and I’ll Tell You a Story … Philosophy for Children (2024 – this latter title translated with Nataliya Bezsalova and Berta Karaim). Cockerill has also written a book about Sukhomlynsky, Each One Must Shine (1999). Sukhomlynsky’s works have been translated into dozens of languages and have sold millions of copies around the world. Alan Cockerill has attempted to bring his remarkable legacy to an English-speaking readership. High resolution photos and other materials are available at: https://www.ejr.com.au/publications/philosophy-for-children/media and at other media sites listed later in this press release.
About Alan Cockerill
Alan Cockerill has worked as a teacher, translator, and researcher. He has a background in Russian Language studies and was awarded a Ph.D. in 1994 for his study of Sukhomlynsky’s educational legacy. His book about Sukhomlynsky, Each One Must Shine, was published by Peter Lang in New York in 1999, and has since been republished in Australia and South Korea. He has published numerous articles about Sukhomlynsky and has translated three of Sukhomlynsky’s major works: My Heart I Give to Children, Our School in Pavlysh and I’ll Tell You a Story … Philosophy for Children.
Vasyl Sukhomlynsky (1918-1970) was a school principal, a prolific writer, and a corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Pedagogical Sciences. From a school in rural Ukraine, where he was principal from 1948 until his death in 1970, Sukhomlynsky’s influence spread throughout the Soviet Union and beyond. In dozens of books and hundreds of articles, all based on his own practical experience, Sukhomlynsky describes a holistic approach to the education of global citizens.
Alan Cockerill’s Translations
Vasyl Sukhomlynsky’s My Heart I Give to Children describes how Sukhomlynsky worked with a class of six-year-old children during an experimental preschool year, and how he continued to work with them during the subsequent four years of their primary schooling. It shows how his methodology contributed to the children’s health and resilience, to their capacity to empathise with others, to their connection with the natural world, and to their aesthetic and moral development, as well as to their intellectual and vocational development. Media kit: https://www.ejr.com.au/publications/media-2016
Vasily Sukhomlinsky’s Our School in Pavlysh: A Holistic Approach to Education describes the inspirational work carried out at Pavlysh Secondary School in central Ukraine during the 1960s. Raising his school from the ashes of World War II, Sukhomlinsky created a system of education that was deeply embedded in the natural environment and that fostered the qualities of curiosity, empathy, and creativity. Students enrolling in Sukhomlinsky’s school became part of a vibrant learning community in which teachers, parents, community members, and the students themselves all played a role in educating each other. In this environment students became autonomous, lifelong learners. Media kit: https://www.ejr.com.au/media-2021
Vasyl Sukhomlynsky’s I’ll Tell You a Story … Philosophy for Children is a collection of over 800 ethical tales for children of varying ages, from preschool to senior secondary, by the eminent Ukrainian educator and children’s writer Vasyl Sukhomlynsky. The stories, which paint a picture of village life in post-war Ukraine, are accompanied by Sukhomlynsky’s reflections on teaching values to children. The stories were written for children of various ages, from preschool through to senior secondary school. They include tales about plants and animals, descriptions of natural beauty, vivid accounts of human relationships in families, at school, and in the broader community, and heartrending scenes from World War II.
Media kit: https://www.ejr.com.au/publications/philosophy-for-children/media
A selection of Sukhomlynsky’s little stories for children, beautifully illustrated by students from Ukraine and Belarus.
The lovely illustrations in this book show beauty through the eyes of children. In 2013, thousands of school students in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan submitted illustrations for this selection of stories. A sample of these illustrations can be viewed at:
Alan Cockerill’s Book
Each One Must Shine is an account of the life and work of Vasyl Sukhomlynsky (1918–1970), one of the most influential educators of the twentieth century. Sukhomlynsky’s writings inspired millions of Soviet school teachers and continue to inspire educators around the world. Sukhomlynsky’s idealistic vision of human development and his deep love for children led him to develop a holistic system of education that emphasised the moral and aesthetic dimensions of a child’s development as well as the physical, intellectual and vocational. He was the principal of a rural school in central Ukraine for twenty-two years, and he wrote about his experience in numerous books and articles. His school was visited by thousands of educators from the length and breadth of the Soviet Union and beyond, and his books have been read by millions.
