Art is mandatory in government schools but often not implemented. In the Akanksha Foundation’s 27 public-private partnership schools across three cities in Maharashtra, art has been integral to the education of 15,000+ children from low-income communities. Over two decades, we have witnessed how art becomes a transformative tool—shaping children’s creative, critical, and communication skills. This inspired us to pursue system-level change: taking one municipal corporation at a time and demonstrating how art can be embedded sustainably with government ownership. Through Art for Akanksha X, we now see what is possible—schools hiring art teachers, building time for art into timetables, allocating resources, engaging stakeholders, and experiencing renewed excitement about what children can create. We believe these examples can shift how public systems view art and unlock its power for every child.
In low-resourced public schools with teacher shortages, prioritising art is challenging. Art for Akanksha X offers a replicable, full-stack solution: a digital curriculum with contextualised lesson plans, hands-on teacher training, and learning resources that enable any teacher to become an art teacher. The proprietary, evolving curriculum is process-based, adaptable to diverse classrooms, and designed to build creative thinking, imagination, and socio-emotional skills using simple, locally available materials.
In the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation in Maharashtra, 37 schools saw shifts in teacher mindset, meaningful lessons implemented, student-led murals, and exposure through competitions and field trips. Within a year, PCMC scaled the program to 105 schools, hiring art teachers, providing supplies, placing art on timetables, allocating dedicated budgets, and appointing a nodal officer for art education. AfA X trained 18 art teachers across these schools, moving pedagogy from technique-focused to student-centred, strengthening teacher confidence in student voice (75%), and securing systemwide legitimacy—evaluated through baseline-endline FGDs, observations, and MSC reflections.
Art showcases like the Art Box featured over 400 student artworks, with 35 students presenting their learning to 750 visitors from public schools—shifting how an entire system perceived the purpose and power of art.
Art for Akanksha X started out in 2022 with 7 schools, 15 teachers and 1250 students and has seen strong demand from public, private, and non-profit schools—now reaching 144 schools, 158 teachers, and 54,220 students across 8 states. Within a year, we see visible shifts in teacher motivation, student engagement, and leadership involvement, reflected through surveys and school feedback. From public-private partnership schools to innovative non- profit schools and large private networks, diverse institutions are seeking our program for its adaptability and impact.
Over the next 2–3 years, we aim to partner with 2–3 city public school systems, reaching 500 schools and 200,000 children. Our long-term goal is to integrate our art curriculum into state policy and practice, demonstrating how art can be systemically embedded in government schools. We are also building an “AfAX in a Box” — a fully codified, ready-to-scale package of curriculum, training, processes, and resources that can be implemented in 1000+ schools across India.
Reach out to the Art for Akanksha X team.
Share how art fits into your school’s vision. We provide sample lessons, co-create a customized implementation plan, connect you to a community of educators, and guide your school through training, resources, and support.
Contact: Ruchika.gupta@akanksha.org
