THE HIVE Quarter 2 | July – September 2026 | Welcome to the Quarter Two edition of The HIVE, Vision Empower’s newsletter for July – September 2026!
This quarter brought new spaces for discovery, opportunities for teachers to learn and share, and milestones worth celebrating. From accessible STEM labs and the launch of the Digital Accessible Resource Centre to hands-on learning and national recognition, these stories reflect our commitment to making education accessible and meaningful for children with visual impairments.
Behind every milestone are students, educators, schools, partners, volunteers and supporters who make this work possible. Read on to discover what we are creating together. |
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| Seven New Accessible STEM Labs, More Opportunities for Discovery |
| More spaces to touch, experiment, and discover! This quarter, schools inaugurated seven accessible STEM labs for students with visual impairments, benefiting around 400 students and 70 teachers.
Cognizant Foundation, under STEM4ALL, supported two labs in Tamil Nadu and Kerala; OneAdvanced supported four labs in Karnataka; and Caring Friends implemented an accessible lab in Gujarat. Building on our partners’ continued commitment, these spaces bring science to life through tactile models, assistive technologies and hands-on experimentation, nurturing curiosity, confidence and independent learning. |
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| From Classroom Practice to a National Platform |
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Classroom experiences became knowledge worth sharing as 12 special-school teachers and Vision Empower coordinators participated in CTiS 2026 at IISER Pune, organised by ACM India. Through papers and posters, they shared how adapted games and computational thinking make STEM accessible for students with visual impairments—building reasoning and problem-solving skills while deepening understanding of mathematics and science. |
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Making Foundational Learning Accessible: NIPUN Bharat in Odisha |
| | How can foundational literacy and numeracy become accessible to children with visual and hearing impairments?
Vision Empower and the SSEPD Department, Government of Odisha, brought together 80 teachers for a two-day NIPUN Bharat capacity-building programme. Teachers explored how to adapt classroom practices and learning materials for children with visual and hearing impairments, using tactile, auditory, and experiential approaches suited to learners’ varied needs. |
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| Bringing Nature Closer, Making Exploration Accessible |
| | Environmental learning often depends on visual observation. Our Nature Corners open up more ways to explore.
Now live in four schools across Kerala, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, these spaces, created with support from Wipro Foundation, help students with visual impairments explore plants, soil and biodiversity through touch, sound and hands-on gardening. Accessible earthian learning kits have also reached 10 schools, encouraging curiosity and care for nature. |
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| Equipping Teachers, Enabling Accessible STEM Learning |
| What needs to change first to make education truly accessible?
Not just the classroom. Not just the curriculum. It begins with the teacher and with helping teachers experience what accessible and experiential learning can look like in practice.
This quarter, Pragya workshops reached 140 teachers across five states, exploring practical ways to make STEM engaging for students with visual impairments through tactile resources, assistive technologies and experiential activities. The workshops were supported by Amogha Welfare Foundation, Wipro Foundation and Microsoft CSR in Karnataka; Cognizant Foundation in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal; Microsoft CSR, in collaboration with IIIT Bangalore, in Uttar Pradesh; and LTM CSR Foundation in Maharashtra.
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Introducing the First-of-its-Kind Digital Accessible Resource Centre (D-ARC) |
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A new space to explore, create and learn! D-ARC, an initiative of Cognizant Foundation India and Vision Empower, has opened at Ramakrishna Mission Blind Boys’ Academy, Narendrapur, Kolkata, with support from the Government of West Bengal’s Department of Mass Education Extension and Library Services and our knowledge, technology and design partners.
Designed for students with visual impairments and other disabilities, its four interconnected zones bring accessible digital content, assistive technologies, STEM, coding, robotics and AI together for hands-on discovery and confident learning. |
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| A Proud Moment: Vice-President of India Visits Donyi-Polo Mission School |
| It was a very gratifying moment for Donyi-Polo Mission School for the Hearing and Visually Impaired and for Vision Empower when the Hon’ble Vice-President of India, Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan, visited the school in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh. Students proudly shared how they learn using Hexis and tactile books. With support from GE Foundation, the CSR arm of The Great Eastern Shipping Co. Ltd., Vision Empower has been working with the school since 2024 to make STEM learning more accessible. |
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Jyoti Sroat Tops Meghalaya’s School Performance Index | A milestone worth celebrating! Jyoti Sroat Higher Secondary School, Shillong, ranked first among 11,443 schools in Meghalaya’s School Performance Grading Index 2025–26.
Since 2023, Vision Empower, supported by Great Eastern Foundation, has partnered with this inclusive school through tactile resources, teacher training, and an Accessible STEM Lab. The school principal described this support as helping shift classroom learning “from theory to discovery.” |
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Gold Recognition for Accessible Learning!
Vision Empower’s Accessible Resource Centre (ARC) initiative received the Award of Excellence (Gold) in Disability Inclusion & Accessibility at the SAMAGRA CSR Awards 2026.
Established with CAGS at IIIT Bangalore, ARC brings students with visual impairments, educators, and researchers together to explore accessible STEM learning, tactile resources, digital tools, and assistive technologies.
Special thanks to AISECT India, KDEM, and the Department of Electronics, IT & BT, Government of Karnataka, for recognising our work.
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ARC on Wheels: Taking Science to Students
| Science comes alive through exploration, touch, and experience, and every child deserves the opportunity to take part. Accessible Resource Centre (ARC) on Wheels, our mobile experiential learning centre, takes accessible STEM resources and hands-on experiments directly to students with visual impairments, including those attending schools in remote locations.
During July and August, 78 students explored tactile models of the human body and experimented with light, sound, and simple machines, while 15 teachers discovered practical ways to bring accessible science into everyday lessons. |
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Partnership Recognition from Cognizant Outreach in Pune
Cognizant Outreach in Pune recognised Vision Empower’s role in creating meaningful volunteering opportunities and invited our team to its Volunteers Get-Together, Rewards & Recognition Ceremony. This appreciation celebrates our shared commitment to turning volunteers’ enthusiasm into action for accessible learning. |
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Contact usoutreach.ve@gmail.com
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