TIPA was co-founded by Emilie Carosin, PhD (Researcher in psychology and education) and Angelique de La Hogue (Educationalist). It began as a pilot project in 2007 for children experiencing learning or social difficulties at Black River Government School. The project was set up in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, ZEP (Zones d’Education Prioritaire) Unit, and it was based on previous research supporting the view that teaching arts using interactive pedagogy fosters the development of moral values. It was also in line with the mission of the Ministry of Education and Human Resources to promote essential life skills, critical and innovation thinking, and citizen’s values. Weekly creativity art workshops were dedicated to 52 children experiencing learning difficulties during school hours to realize different artistic activities in fields such as circus, theatre, story writing and creative arts.
Since 2007, TIPA has intervened in 11 ZEP schools and 1 RCA school.
Since the beginning of our action, we impacted on the following beneficiaries:
Timeline of TIPA’s Interventions in ZEP Schools 2007-2024
2007: TIPA began as a pilot project in Black River Government School, working with children experiencing learning or social difficulties. Weekly creative art workshops were organized with 43 children, focusing on artistic activities such as theatre, storytelling, and creative arts.
2008: TIPA was officially registered as an association and impacted 57 children in Black River Government School.
2009: TIPA’s programme was introduced in 1 additional school: Barkly Government School. The total number of beneficiaries increased to around 100 children.
2010 : TIPA expanded to four ZEP schools: Black River Government School, Barkly Government School, Guy Rozemont Government School, and André Bazerque Government School. The number of children benefiting from TIPA’s intervention rose to 655. Workshops focused on children with learning difficulties, and creativity classes were introduced for all pupils during one school term.
2011 : TIPA’s activities evolved to include all students in creativity classes across all three terms, benefiting every child in the schools. Collaboration with teachers was strengthened, and TIPA impacted 655 children in 4 ZEP schools, namely Barkly, Guy Rozemont, André Bazerque and Aimé Césaire Government Schools.
2012 : TIPA’s programme was implemented with 941 children and 41 teachers in 4 ZEP schools (Barkly, Guy Rozemont, André Bazerque and Emmanuel Anquetil Government Schools)
2013 : Despite a downsizing due to financial constraints, TIPA sustained its work in 2 ZEP schools (Guy Rozemont & Barkly GS), supporting 317 children and collaborating with the ZEP unit on the Parents’ Club Project at Guy Rozemont Government School. This period also saw TIPA’s participation in teacher training and the development of various pedagogical resources.
2014 : We intervened in 2 schools namely : André Bazerque GS and Guy Rozemont GS with a total of 343 children.
2015 : TIPA conducted focus groups with its stakeholders and developed a 5-year Programme Plan (2016-2020) based on Theory of Change, aiming to sustain a long-term impact on vulnerable children, teachers, parents, and local communities. We intervened in 2 schools namely : Vallijee and Guy Rozemont with a total of 380 children.
2016 : We intervened in 3 schools namely : Vallijee, Pointe aux Sables and Guy Rozemont Government Schools with a total of 410 children.
2017 : TIPA’s interventions continued in the three ZEP schools: Vallijee, Pointe aux Sables and Guy Rozemont Government Schools, where 313 children benefited from the programme.
2018 : We intervened in 3 schools namely : Vallijee, Pointe aux Sables and Nicolay Government Schools with a total of 412 children.
2019 : We continued our interventions in the same 3 schools (Vallijee, Pointe aux Sables and Nicolay GS with a total of 312 children.
2020 : We intervened in 2 schools namely : Pointe aux Sables and Briqueterie Government Schools with a total of 220 children.
2021 : TIPA Programme 2016-2020 was assessed. A 4-year programme and strategic plan (2021-2024) were developed. We intervened in 3 schools namely : Pointe aux Sables, Nicolay and Briqueterie Government Schools with a total of 281 children.
2022 : We continued in the same 3 schools namely : Pointe aux Sables, Nicolay and Briqueterie with a total of 178 children.
2023 : We intervened in 5 schools namely : Pointe aux Sables, Aimé Césaire, Nicolay, Briqueterie Government schools, and Flacq Post RCA school, with a total of 290 children. TIPA became an official partner of the Fortified Learning Environment Unit (FLEU) for a National Programme to support children in difficulty in Primary Schools.
2024 : We intervened in 4 schools namely : Révérend Espitalier Noel, Aimé Césaire, Nicolay Government Schools, and Flacq Post RCA school with a total of 208 children. Assessment of the previous programme (2021-2024) was done through focus groups with external and internal stakeholders. The development of a 5 year programme (2025-2029), and review of the strategic plan are in progress.
Status reports and newsletters are sent regularly to keep donors posted on our progress.