– This is a technopark. It is equipped with high-tech equipment that helps the accelerated technical development of children. In fact, a new model of additional education is being created here. And it is extremely necessary. In Birobidzhan, no more than five percent of children are currently engaged in technical creativity. However, in this our region is not different from others – in the whole country, the statistics are about the same. We have wonderful sports clubs, art and music schools, choreographic groups and much more. But the guys who gravitate to technology, programming, modeling, the choice is small. And children's quantoriums are created just to solve this problem. They will train future engineers, programmers, and other creators of technological progress right from the school bench.
The federal network "Quantorium" has a great future. It is developing on a huge scale throughout Russia. 89 sites have already been opened in 62 regions. 80 thousand children are involved in their work, in the educational process, and 600 thousand children are involved in various activities. Now the Quantorium is coming to our area as well.
– How will the classes be held in it? It is unlikely that they will copy the usual lessons in an ordinary school…
– In the quantorium, children will be engaged in technical creativity. That is, not to cram, but to create. In this they will be assisted by mentors. Their task is to captivate the children, to awaken their interest in creation. Therefore, the classical lesson, in the usual sense, will not be here. Lectures and master classes are expected. And, of course, a lot of practice. You can't train a good engineer without it. The guys will also work on joint projects.
Usually, thirteen directions (quantums) are practiced in quantoriums. In Birobidzhan, we first open five: VR/AR (virtual and augmented reality), Energikvantum (development and implementation of renewable eco-friendly energy sources), Geoquantum (study of geospatial technologies), IT-quantum (programming and information protection), Roboquantum (application programming of robots). We also plan to equip a high-tech shop. This is a special part of the quantorium. Here all the children's ideas will come to life, turn into real, tangible things. That is, quantum is an invention, and high-tech workshop is an implementation. It will be equipped with various high-tech equipment.
– At what age will children be able to attend the quantorium? Will everyone be accepted, or is it necessary to pass some kind of selection?
– Children from eleven to eighteen years old are engaged in quantoriums. I do not think that a competitive selection is necessary for admission there. Technical ability, in my opinion, is not an innate talent. They should be vaccinated from an early age. Then the child will have a desire to express himself in technical creativity. We plan to open our quantorium this year, to conduct recruitment. We hope to welcome everyone.