Design for Change: Empowering children with the "I CAN" mindset
Example: Walk us through a specific example(s) of how this solution makes a difference; include its primary activities.
Impact: What is the impact of the work to date? Also describe the projected future impact for the coming years.
Spread Strategies: Moving forward, what are the main strategies for scaling impact?
Financial Sustainability Plan: What is this solution’s plan to ensure financial sustainability?
Marketplace: Who else is addressing the problem outlined here? How does the proposed project differ from these approaches?
Founding Story
Team
akanksha
agarwal
Please select
, GJ, Ahmedabad
Individuals, Foundations, NGOs, Businesses.
INDEX AWARD: Design to improve Life in 2011
Rockefeller Foundation Award for Innovation in 2012
Ashoka Fellowship
Fetzer Institute
Patricia Blunt Koldyke Fellowship in 2014
6 - 12, 13 - 17.
Other.
I am applying on behalf of a particular program or initiative.
Public (tuition-free), Private (tuition-based), Home-School.
Curricular, Extracurricular, Community, Policy or Analysis.
Putting Children in Charge: Giving children a voice and cultivating agency via experiential learning, project-based learning, and civic engagement.
21st Century Skills of Empathy, Collaboration, Creativity and Critical Thinking. And improvement in academic outcomes.
a. Design thinking workshops, year-long curriculum, school challenge, celebration and publication of stories
b. across 35 countries
c. throughout the year
d. different activities have different time durations. However we keep our activities simple and less time intensive.
e. Dfc trained professionals
Technology has made knowledge an open source entity, children no longer have to wait for an adult to be introduced to new content, in both positive and negative ways, they are empowered to find out things on their own. Moreover with creativity taking precedence in businesses has also pushed for a similar focus in education as well. Within Indian context, National Curriculum Framework 2005, has been able to emphasise on learning through curiosity. The elimination of assessment through end year exams in India has allowed for fear free learning and joyful classrooms.
Learning should be a natural process rather than being a forced activity or a burden on children. Just as naturally as children enjoy playing, they should be allowed to have the joyful opportunities of learning. Learning through play builds from children’s curiosity and gives them a chance to discover their own strenghts and passion. Learning through play allows children to experiment, to fail and try again as it removes all their fear. This has a positive impact on their social emotional well-being as well. Therefore learning through play is the only true means to learning.
Private Individuals: 20 percent
Corporates: 60 percent
Awards/Grants: 20 percent
Design for Change is a non-profit initiative. Our basic content on the design process and participation is available in different languages for free and is open to all for development. We believe that everybody can be a changemaker and should have access to the tools to be inspired and take action to shape the world around them. To sustain our work, we have put differentiated prices.
DFC has developed a 30 hour curriculum for teaching design thinking to eighth grade students, we would like to spend the funding in refining the curricula and developing it further for middle school grades. We would also like to use the funds for research on the impact of DFC Curriculum.
Design for Change became a global movement because of its committed partners across the world. We believe in forging partnerships for growth and therefore DFC is an open source idea. Within India, we are able to reach 30,000 schools through our education NGO partners who implement DFC in their own schools.
We have initiated collaborations with Mapyourworld.org whom we got to know through the Ashoka Network. They also work on empowering children by giving them an opportunity to create a better world through mapping a problem.
DFC Curriculum would have achieved incorporation in education curricula across the world allowing children to graduate with tools and confidence to make the world a better place.
DFC Curriculum transforms both students and teachers. It builds the I CAN spirit in children, and allows teachers to see the potential in their students through the change they are able to bring. This brings significant changes in the classroom environment. We would like to gather more data on the manner in which children learn 21st century skills while doing the DFC curriculum.
50,001 to 100,000
Yes
Fewer than 10
Fewer than 10
Creating a Supportive Socio-Emotional Environment, Providing a Range of Opportunities (providing the equipment and materials needed for various types of play), Educational Structuring (developing playful projects within educational contexts).