Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Novosibirsk State University –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
“Sigma” is a free summer scientific and educational school for students in grades 7-11, which has been held for the third year at the Faculty of Information Technology NSUThis year the event took place from July 7 to 13.
The main idea of “Sigma” is from students to schoolchildren. The goal of the project is to bring schoolchildren closer to the university, providing the opportunity to freely choose courses, participate in rich discussions and interact with teachers who care about their interests, not grades.
This season, Sigma hosted 24 courses taught by 28 instructors, including students, graduates, and young researchers from various universities, such as NSU, MSU, SPbSU, HSE, Tyumen State University, MVSES, MSU Skolkovo, IPL SB RAS, as well as industry practitioners, including the Whatelse.lab marketing agency. The geography of the instructors covered the Novosibirsk Region, Krasnoyarsk, Tyumen, St. Petersburg, and Moscow.
Each course was built as a cycle of 3-6 lessons. The format — from discussions and mini-lectures to role-playing games and workshops — was determined by the teachers and adjusted to the course concept. The course topics included a wide range of disciplines, such as sociology, anatomy, cinematography, linguistics, programming, biotechnology, as well as Olympiad courses in chemistry and literature. Thus, participants could try themselves in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and engineering and understand which of them were of the greatest interest.
Kirill Kondrenko, a graduate of NSU and one of the permanent teachers at Sigma, shares his experience:
— I think that Sigma is a great opportunity for schoolchildren to gain practical skills and learn interesting things that are ignored in a comprehensive school. Last year I taught the course Online Security, and this year — Telebot on developing Telegram bots in Python. During the course, we studied the basic elements of building bots, and at the end, the students did group projects — among them were a guide to interesting places, a bot for recognizing text from voice messages, a bot for analyzing user emotions, and others. During the classes, the students liked the interactivity the most: it was worth changing just a couple of lines of code — and the bot’s behavior in Telegram completely changed.
“Sigma” creates an atmosphere in which schoolchildren with “burning eyes” receive knowledge from students with the same sincere interest. I am convinced that it is this atmosphere that influences skills and knowledge even more than the content of the classes themselves. Every day at “Sigma” there were extracurricular activities that helped “refresh the mind” and distract from the courses for a while. In my opinion, this is exactly what is lacking in ordinary schools, where students have 7-8 lessons a day.
The Sigma organizers play no less an important role than the teachers: they set the tone for the entire school, coordinate processes and create the very atmosphere in which everything happens.
Vladimir Sharapov, a second-year student at the NSU Institute of Information Technologies and the head of Sigma from the NSU Institute of Information Technologies, says:
— Sigma was my first experience in organizing such a large-scale and long-term event. It was a truly exciting and responsible adventure. Of course, there were difficulties, but we overcame all the challenges. I am sure that everything went well — including thanks to the support and trust shown to me. Special thanks to the entire team of organizers, without whom this path would not have been possible — to those who supported me on this new path.
As mentioned above, the geography of the school’s teachers was represented by different universities and regions. Tarina Iptysheva, the main organizer of Sigma, a student of SAS Tyumen State University, talks about her participation in the project:
— For me, Sigma is, first of all, about the feeling of “Peace, friendship and chewing gum!” and establishing supportive and warm relationships. And only secondly, about gaining new experience, knowledge, and getting acquainted with interesting ideas and disciplines.
I think many of the participants actually did it, at least from what they say. And that makes me incredibly happy.
And I’m also very happy when the guys say that they managed to get to know each other, become friends and find a common language – and this is probably the most valuable thing.
This year, 107 participants from the Novosibirsk region gathered at Sigma. Each could choose up to four courses and create their own educational trajectory. Upon completion of the school, the guys shared their impressions with us.
Lisa, Sigma student:
— This is my third year at the school, and I was looking forward to this season with great impatience. All my expectations were met in abundance — I am absolutely delighted with the variety of courses, the atmosphere, and, of course, the people I met or reconnected with. For me, Sigma is always about new cool acquaintances and warm meetings with old friends and new like-minded people.
I really like the idea of “from students to schoolchildren” that Sigma promotes, and that’s probably why one of the highlights of the first half of the season was Self-Government Day. I really liked the idea, and it gave me new ideas about what I’d like to do in the future.
In general, I always say that Sigma is a meaningful event of July for me. And I think the emotions and impressions I return home with after each school day are the best confirmation of this.
Yulia, a student of Sigma:
— Of course, the concept of Sigma as a place where you will be appreciated, where your opinion will be appreciated, where teachers respect you, is very important. Especially for teenagers who came here from a familiar school environment, often harsh and formal. To find yourself in such a comfortable place, where there is attention, respect and a sincere interest in you as a person — it’s really cool. Here, the teacher is interested in you, wants to share knowledge and is truly open to discussions.
We thank all the teachers and organizers, without whom Sigma would not have become what it is: a place of genuine interest, academic freedom and friendly interaction.
Special thanks to the Faculty of Information Technology of NSU and the Department of Youth Policy and Educational Work of NSU for their support in implementing the school – thanks to you, this project continues and develops.
See you next season of Sigma!
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
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