Project 'To Infinity and Beyond'
This project – ‘To Infinity and Beyond’ is an attempt to provide 80 students from an under-resourced school with avenues for personal development through an art integrated curriculum. As teachers, we hope that this will translate into success in the classroom as well, so that they not only bridge the achievement gap but also imbibe mindsets and skills that put them on a life altering pathway of opportunity. This blog seeks to garner resources and raise funds to translate this vision into a reality.
Challenge
We teach in a low income community where resources are scarce and money is hard to come by. Children of auto rickshaw drivers, carpenters and maids walk into school everyday believing that where they come from will not determine who they become. Yet parental pressure and the harsh socio - economic reality of their lives has conditioned them to define success in terms of marks.
Every child is reduced to a percentage and every personality to a statistic. Their parents have just enough money to send them to a school where the infrastructure is non existent. Providing their children with access to a sport or to a dance lesson is a luxury they dare not dream of. In a system where conformity and rote learning are celebrated, a child's individuality and confidence are the casualties.
Every child is reduced to a percentage and every personality to a statistic. Their parents have just enough money to send them to a school where the infrastructure is non existent. Providing their children with access to a sport or to a dance lesson is a luxury they dare not dream of. In a system where conformity and rote learning are celebrated, a child's individuality and confidence are the casualties.
Solution
To Infinity and Beyond is a project that seeks to draw out the potential of each child irrespective of what their background is through an art integrated curriculum. Through this website and our network we aim to raise funds and amass resources to enable the children of St. Francis Primary school to gain access to art, theatre and dance lessons from professionals in the field that will complement their academic curriculum.
