The first participants in the Science to the Regions × Empathy program have returned to the Urals

SVERDLOVSK REGION

 

Students from the Sverdlovsk Region and Perm Territory visited the Moscow location of the free educational Physico-Mathematical and IT session Science to the Regions × Empathy. It was held from the 18th to 31st of March at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT). The session was organized by the Empathy Charitable Foundation created by Mikhail Shelkov, a shareholder of VSMPO-AVISMA, and Phystech Schools Development Foundation.

 

For two weeks, 60 students in grades 8–9 from Ekaterinburg, Verkhnyaya and Nizhnyaya Salda, Perm and Berezniki were trained in core subjects and project activities by the best teachers of MIPT and Kapitsa Physics and Technology (Phystech) Lyceum, visited the closed laboratories and saw the capital. Children's and teachers' participation in the trip was entirely free thanks to the Charitable Foundation of Mikhail Shelkov.

 

As RusBusinessNews has been informed by the Empathy Press Office, the first half of the session was devoted to subject lectures and seminars, while the second half was devoted to lectures on popular science and intensive workshops for creating your own products. In order to improve their grade point average, the young people of the Urals participated in challenging physics experiments and created from scratch telegram bots, including a grade calculator that displays the number of missing fives to increase an average score. During the lecture Mathematics Around Us, students had the opportunity to interact with the renowned MIPT professor and creator of the Matcult-hello channel Alexey Savvateev. They also went inside the University's laboratories, watched a Robofootball match, and saw some incredible inventions. Teachers developed their abilities to engage youth in projects and research by witnessing the Phystech Lyceum methodologists and other attendees of the scientific and practical conference Start in Innovation.

 

"The special value of the Science to the Regions × Empathy lies in the fact that the program is designed not just for schoolchildren. It is also an opportunity for teachers to improve their qualifications and receive methodological support from more experienced MIPT experts, so that they can then pass on the acquired knowledge to their students in the regions. Project activities, a new and popular path that not everyone can understand on their own, are given their special section of the curriculum. We have already received very good feedback and requests from other cities, and we would like to reach more interested active teachers in the future," said Mikhail Shelkov, an MIPT alumnus who now supports his alma mater.

Photo: Empathy Charity Foundation Press Service

 

"The Phystech Schools Development Foundation appreciates the opportunity to help the regions of Russia in the development of school education. The fact that, together with the Empathy Charitable Foundation of Mikhail Shelkov, we held the Science to the Regions educational session for children and teachers from the Perm Territory and Sverdlovsk Region, means that we are on the right track. Every year, more and more regions are joining our program, and more and more partners are cooperating with us with great interest. We are grateful to the Empathy Foundation for helping us organize this session. Our aim is to show children the prospects of engaging in scientific and technical activities. We have a lot of experience in how to form a good natural science school. We are happy to share it and modify the modern educational process. Therefore, the Phystech Schools Development Foundation plans to continue actively developing school education opportunities throughout Russia, in all regions with no exception," said Andrey Bogdanov, executive director of the Phystech Schools Development Foundation and an MIPT alumnus.

 

Along with their studies, participants also enjoyed a tour around Moscow, visited the Moskvarium Centre of Oceanography and Marine Biology, participated in math competitions, and attended a master class in public speaking.

 

At the end of the session, each student received a certificate of participation. Ahead of them is preparation for participation in project conferences and Olympiads, including the famous Start in Innovation and Start in Science at Phystech in March 2024.

 

"The MIPT atmosphere, teachers, and lectures are very inspiring, all of which energize me for further development. It is interesting that not only children, but also teachers from our cities study at the session. And, most likely, when we get there, we'll have new clubs to attend. And it's also cool to continue studying in your city, not just here," Ulyana Marieva, a student specializing in physics and mathematics at her school in Ekaterinburg, said about her impressions.

 

Indeed, during the year after the session, its participants can consult online with MIPT lecturers in preparation for the Olympiads or on their projects. Teachers, with the support of specialists from Phystech, will be able to open clubs on project activities at schools.