"The arts are about the qualities of human experiences. Through music, dance, visual arts, drama, and the rest, we give form to our feelings and thoughts about ourselves, and how we experience the world around us."
-Sir Ken Robinson
Our Current Reality
99th
is what India ranks in the Global Creativity Index that combines individually-ranked countries based on creativity, technology, talent, and tolerance into an overall score
Only 1 out 4
Government schools (within the MCGM) have an art teacher, in spite of art being a compulsory period in schools.
For the next ten years, skills and competencies such as creativity, collaboration, critical thinking, emotional intelligence etc. are in high demand across workplaces.
However, in education, there is a lack of focus to holistically and creatively develop children, especially those from underserved communities. Instead, academic growth takes precedence.
Furthermore, pedagogical methods are outdated and have not kept in pace with the changing world. This is because there continues to remain a gap in the teacher training infrastructure to implement holistic education effectively.
Certain reforms exist within the National Education Policy 2020 to make 'education more experiential, holistic, integrated, inquiry-driven', but their implementation is possible only by 2030 - 2040 and until then current factors of learning would not remain relevant.
What happens to a child because of these problems?
A child within such a system, experiences the lack of an outlet to voice out what they truly want in their education journey.
They are not exposed to working with tools and methods that feed into creative thinking, imagination and collaboration.
They often grow up to experience low levels of confidence, struggle with communication, building and maintaining healthy relationships & collectively problem solving.
This deprivation of holistic and creative learning, hampers their journey as a student in the education system.
How does it also affect an educator?
Educators feel helpless not knowing how they can create safe and joyful spaces of learning for their students.
This is due to the lack of contextualized resources and training in order to cater to student's current needs.
Educators also feel overburdened by numerous responsibilities and find themselves unable to learn and grow
This restricts them from adopting and practicing innovative learning methodologies.
Our Solution
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Saturday Art Class works as the bridge to solve problems at the systemic level as well as solve problems faced by children in Indian Education.
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Our programs aim to strengthen and capacitate systems of education that are inclusive of children and educators.
This enables children to develop key skills such as communication, collaboration, perseverance, imagination and critical thinking that will help them thrive creatively, socially and emotionally.
Our relevance in the National Education Policy 2020
The National Education Policy lists several benefits of a higher quality education system that promotes multidisciplinary learning. It highlights the need for setting up an education system that promotes the holistic scientific and creative development of individuals.
The Saturday Art Class School Curriculum and our model approach for our flagship programs directly contributes to the National Education Policy and addresses various components of the policy, specifically talking about bringing arts into our schools.
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Following are some key statements that align with 'Our Why' :
4.7 As a part of the thrust on experiential learning, art-integrated education will be embedded in classroom transactions not only for creating joyful classrooms, but also for imbibing the Indian ethos through integration of Indian art and culture in the teaching and learning process at every level.
22.3. The arts form a major medium for imparting culture. The arts - besides strengthening cultural identity, awareness, and uplifting societies - are well known to enhance cognitive and creative abilities in individuals and increase individual happiness.
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