In 2020, SIBUR supported a series of intensive training events for teachers of physics, mathematics, robotics, and computer science. These events were attended by school teachers from four cities: Dzerzhinsk, Gubkinsky (Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug), Nyagan, and Pyt-Yakh (Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug - Yugra). The project was carried out using a remote mode of communication. 

STEAM School sessions included lectures, seminars, and hands-on workshops.  At the sessions, school teachers were introduced to innovative approaches to education and acquired relevant practical skills needed to organize the learning process. 

The classes were taught by teachers and teaching guidance counsellors from innovative schools and educational centers in Moscow and St. Petersburg. The instructors not only discussed their innovative methods and techniques, but also shared recommendations and their own tips on "livening up" the learning process, and provided links to useful Internet resources. In addition, the participants were presented with sets of teaching materials to help them organize their own practical classes.

In 2021 the project was held in Kstovo, Noyabrsk, Muravlenko and Nizhnevartovsk where 520 teachers had improved their professional skills. 40 events took place in these 4 cities including lectures, discussions, workshops and stand-sessions in online and offline. 

In 2022, 606 teachers from Voronezh, Perm, Nizhnekamsk, and Tobolsk took part in a series of intensive training sessions that consisted of three parts:

•  a lecture module consisting of a series of lectures by renowned teachers designed to introduce the attendees to some advanced teaching methods as well as to help them develop effective communication with other colleagues, their students, and themselves;

•  a booth session held on the premises of an exhibition showcasing materials, tutorials, and models detailing the topics presented at the lectures;

•  subject-specific sessions including master classes and training exercises focusing on specific disciplines such as mathematics, physics, engineering, chemistry.

Nadezhda Krasyuk, computer science teacher at School 1, Pyt-Yakh: Thanks to our participation in the STEAM School program, we were able to truly immerse ourselves in an atmosphere of innovation, to feel the triggering of reflection and creative thinking. In addition to the content of the course itself, which was certainly extremely useful and instructive, I was really impressed by our instructors’ courteous and respectful attitude towards course participants. The lecturers were the embodiment of refined culture and effective communication! After the main part of the class, everyone was welcome to stay and discuss the topics that got them interested. I was happy to meet like-minded people and thanks to them I was able to get answers to many of my own professional questions. I would like to cordially thank the course organizers for their information support at all stages of the program and for the methodological materials we were provided ahead of time to prepare for the program! Many thanks to the lecturers for their patience and caring attitude! 

Olga Paleva, Head of Dzerzhinsk’s Education Department: STEAM School has stirred a great deal of interest inside the teaching community of Dzerzhinsk, and this is hardly surprising. First of all, the program helped teachers see their teaching disciplines in a new light and showed them how to use modern equipment and technologies more effectively. Secondly, the participants were introduced to innovative new ways of doing things. We are very grateful to SIBUR for their support of initiatives such as this, because STEAM School is a unique platform for sharing experiences and best practices, an opportunity to adjust the trajectory and model of teaching to meet the needs of our society today.

Marina Tsepilova, a physics teacher at Nyagan’s Gordienko School 6: The program’s authors discussed new approaches to education. It should be noted that the format that was chosen for the intensive classes, i.e. remote online learning, is a great example of such new approaches with their unique and undeniable advantages. In many ways, our lectures and master classes were conducted quite similar to how streams or live broadcasts on social networks are handled. And this is the format that is the most familiar to, and best understood by the current generation of schoolchildren. I think that it perfectly matches the goal of the project, that is to teach traditional school subjects in such a way so as to ensure that our today’s students will become the sought-after professionals of the future in an environment of global digitalization and rapid development of new technologies. We are very grateful to SIBUR for supporting such projects and we are happy that we now have been given yet another great opportunity to grow and improve professionally.

Gulsina Sadykova, Head of Education Department at Gubkinsky City Administration:- Educational programs similar to STEAM School are important for the development of education in the regions. It is gratifying that innovative approaches and methods that are being tested in schools in the country’s capital are eventually reaching us here as well. Our ambition is to make sure that our teachers and students are in no way inferior to their colleagues and fellow students in the capital. We are grateful to the organizers and to SIBUR for this great opportunity to enhance our teaching skills, especially in such important subject matter areas as mathematics and physics. We are confident that the results of these three days of work will not be too long in coming.