About Us
About Creative Corners
Creative Corners is an innovative new approach to music education, appreciation and awareness. By utilizing modern technology and holistic design, children are given free access to software and games, introducing them to a wealth of music knowledge, empowering their creativity, and intellect.
These innovative stations, placed in schools, community centers, and clinics, will allow children of all ages and economic backgrounds, to access a wide range of software and instructional material on Music Creation, Notation, Production, Performance, and parallel artistic fields such as Animation, Video Editing, and Graphics, alongside traditional educational needs such as English and Math.
Background
The project draws on the revolutionary initiative launched in India in the early 2000’s by Dr. Suggata Mitra, Chief Scientist at NIIT, – “A Hole in the Wall”.
This computer proved to be an instant hit among the slum dwellers, especially the children. With no prior experience, the children learnt to use the computer on their own.
The Delia Arts Foundation, a leading force in Artistic and Educational Philanthropy in Crisis Zones, is looking to recreate this project with a focus on music and arts.
Through research, we found that there is very limited access to music and arts education in many of the areas we serve.
There are very few opportunities in schools and institutions and the costs are high. Thus, children are not introduced to music and arts at an early age and their interest and talent remain hidden.
The Delia Arts Foundation is looking to address this gap through a re-imagination of the “Hole in the Wall” project and its adaptation to the fields of art through “Creative Corners”.
“The acquisition of basic computing skills by any set of children can be achieved through incidental learning provided the learners are given access to a suitable computing facility, with entertaining and motivating content and some minimal (human) guidance” – Dr. Suggata Mitra.
Goals
The Delia Arts Foundation is developing the Creative Corners based on the following goals:
Equal Opportunity
Bridge the digital and musical divide of underprivileged children by facilitating self-learning in a cost effective manner.
Pedagogy
Implement a pedagogy based on exploratory and unstructured learning, which ensures that each child learns at her own pace. All this leads to “accidental” and more often than not, precise construction of knowledge by the learner.
Community
Foster a young community of musicians and artists, on-line and off-line, where underprivileged children have a gateway to music and arts, and a chance to share their development of interest and talent.
Evaluation
Based on the goals we set, we seek to evaluate the impact based on the following parameters:
1- Raw Data: Using data generated from the clouds we will collect information on the number of user profiles created, regular presence, choice of games, user experience and progress.
2- Social Engagement: We will evaluate the children’s engagement based on reports from the ground on direct feedback of the children, their involvement with their friends, parental input and interests.
3- Further Learning: We will seek to follow up with children by engaging them in our centers and activities based on their skills and interests.
4- Long term: We will measure the direct impact on the community through ongoing longitudinal studies tracking the children’s active involvement in music and arts after taking part of this project. The music education sector will be observed to
evaluate the developments of the number of children who are enrolling in music opportunities/programs available. The economic impact on the community as a whole will also be observed on a long-term basis.
About the Delia Arts Foundation
The Delia Arts Foundation supports music in conflict zones and marginalized communities. We do this by creating opportunities for talented musicians to be heard by a broader audience, by providing training opportunities and building music industry infrastructure on the ground through our physical cultural centers. Our goal is to help create an economy where musicians, regardless of their socio-economic or geo-political background, can make music a full-time career. We also support the community by providing equal access to opportunities to be involved in the music field.
While the music industry is well developed in certain areas of the world, our focus is in regions, such as the Middle East and Africa, where even the most talented musicians struggle to commercialize their craft. There is very little infrastructure to support professional musicians – few studios, low-quality recordings, minimal performance opportunities, a lack of educational infrastructure, and zero visibility outside of their region. While plenty of funding is often funneled into schools for children in the form of music education, there is no emphasis on creating sustainable professional opportunities for the most promising talents and making sure all opportunities are accessible for every individual in the community.
For more information, please visit our website at www.delia-arts.org.
