Black River primary school is one of those ZEP schools that experience a 60% failure rate in CPE exams and where several children reach the CPE class without knowing how to read. To respond to that situation, a few youngsters, a teacher of children with special needs, an educational psychologist and artists have joined forces to try and get these kids out of the vicious circle and restore their confidence in the school system through art.

This project was initiated in February 2006 by Emilie Carosin, a student preparing a Master?s degree by research in the psychology of sociocognitive development, education and training. She started with a plastic arts workshop for CPE repeaters after school hours. The MCB, which had sponsored this first initiative, then expressed the wish to go further and the project has developed into five workshops during school hours. Meanwhile, other sponsors have ensured the extension and continuation of the project.

Under the supervision of Cyril Dalais, the TIPA (Terrain for Interactive Pedagogy through Arts) project, led by Angélique De la Hogue, a teacher for children with special needs, and Emilie Carosin, who assesses pupils and workshops, started in February 2007. It offers five workshops at Black River School: drama, circus, do-it-yourself, story writing and plastic arts. This two-year project will extend as from September to other schools, starting with teacher training at Barkly primary school.

The pupils involved are failures of the school system with emotional and psychological problems, expressed by learning difficulties and behaviour disorders such as aggressiveness, hyperactivity or strong inhibitions. This project intends to address the shortcomings of a two-tier education system which cannot cater for children with learning difficulties. ?A lot has to be done as we are in a school system that can be destructive and ill-adapted to some children?s problems?, declares Angélique De la Hogue.

The project aims at restoring their confidence in school by play activities and an interactive pedagogy to fight academic failure by developing values such as organisation, cooperation, and participation. It also aims to encourage oral expression, initiative, creativity, curiosity, discipline, a sense of responsibility, a critical mind, self-esteem and respect for others, thus channeling their aggressiveness and reinforcing their concentration.

The development of those values through art may not only foster the children?s learning process but also teach them to live in society. Through the celebration of the children?s artistic creations, their self-esteem and trust will grow and kindle their motivation to learn. It is also a way for these underprivileged kids to approach art, to develop their interest in Mauritian culture, artistic values, and symbolic representations, essential elements to build citizenship. The winners in this initiative are not only the kids but also their parents, their teachers and their classmates who are often disturbed in their own learning by the unruly ones.

Recognise the value of Creole as a language

The drama workshop develops the child?s oral and body skills while the one on plastic arts teaches the values of cooperation. Story writing encourages the child to learn to read and write. During that workshop, for instance, the children have to create a story in Creole, which is then written and illustrated and made into a book. ?So the book as an object is no longer seen as an enemy, thus helping to reconcile the child with books?, explains Angélique De la Hogue. The do-it-yourself workshop, for its part, promotes fine motion skills and the circus workshop inculcates notions of psycho motility such as space, balance, rhythm, etc.

?As far as possible, the workshops are not chosen by chance, but rather to underline the capacities of these children who have failed at school. It is important to emphasize their successes in order to reconcile them with school?, adds Angélique de la Hogue. Moreover, Creole is used in all workshops, ?to enhance the mother tongue and the child?s identity?. The message is the recognition that ?this language is beautiful, that one can write stories in Creole, and even publish in Creole??

The teacher explains that she tries to bridge the gap between the special needs teacher and the ordinary teacher by creating a link between the curriculum and the workshops, by transmitting academic notions, for instance, when in the D-I-Y workshop the children create a model of Mauritius in papier-mâché, with rivers and mountains.

Angélique De la Hogue explains that this project and the assessment by Emilie Carosin of her attitude as special needs teacher, have helped her a lot ?to refine her teaching practices?. Moreover, she continues: ?In specialized education, it?s not always easy to see the progress of children, because somehow you are too involved. Here what is interesting is that I can see it clearly through Emilie?s assessments.?

THE RESEARCH

■ Emilie Carosin is making a comparison between a group of 7 eleven-year olds who have attended the plastic arts workshop since 2006 and other children who have not followed it. She is analysing the development of values and cooperation by observing the children?s attitudes, along indicators such as self-esteem, mutual respect, participation, assuming more responsibility? that the activities of this workshop develop through the children?s learning and expression with paint, felt pens, Indian ink? ?The objective is to see if they organize their actions and interact in doing so?, explains Emilie Carosin.

Starting with the research of her supervisor, Johnny Favre, (doctor in psychology of cognitive development) on the assessment of cooperation in the moral development of the child, she proposed this project to Black River school.

Various organizations support it financially and in other ways. But it is only in the end that Emilie Carosin will be able to make an overall analysis of the data and submit the results.

■ The plastic arts workshop is much more than a mere workshop. With the help of painter artist Djuneid Dulloo and Catherine Cannabady, freshly graduated in Art & Culture, with specialisation in multimedia, Emilie Carosin is doing research in educational psychology. For Djuneid Dulloo, painting with children and offering them free artistic expression is important. ?I teach them art in a non-strict way? it?s more free style. Especially in our context, where teaching is strict, I try not to be severe and offer them a space of freedom to make their own trip?.

Catherine Cannabady films the activities for Emilie Carosin?s research, but she also plans to make a documentary film of this adventure. As activity leader in the plastic arts workshop, she feels it is important to show children that ?in life, to do things, you must like them. But you must also show them that sometimes you have to go through things you do not like to get to those that you like!? For her, art helps you learn how to feel, and to love, ?and school does not always teach that!?