Difference between 'awarding marks' and 'rewarding marks'

Solution 1:

Your teacher draws a very nice distinction between award and reward.

To award you marks implies that you have earned them and are entitled to them, while to reward you with marks implies that your teacher makes a gift of them to you, out of his or her own bounty, in recognition of your excellence.

There is no bright line between the two terms, and in colloquial speech they may be used interchangeably. Generally, however, award is used when a prize or recognition is accorded as the result of a considered judgment—the decisions of a court are always awards, not rewards—and reward is used for spontaneous gifts—children are always rewarded with treats.