Nikola Tesla Academy set foot on Plovdiv soil at the invitation of its graduates, with whom they have worked entirely online so far

 

As a dream come true - that's how it all started around the creation of the Nikola Tesla Academy. Its creators - Dr. Valentina Ivanova and Dr. Mariana Raykova, are longtime university professors with experience with children and students. They brought together under one roof the best teachers and the best students.

For the teachers of the Nikola Tesla Academy, knowledge is not an end in itself, it is a means and a path. The team in Plovdiv will initially offer classes in Robo English, C++ programming and preparation for graduation exams. Through interesting and entertaining lessons, they help their graduates to move towards their success – in high school and university application and in the long run - as a professional growth, to enter tomorrow, in the world of technology, but not as users, but as creators. Only in this way will the children be guaranteed to have the knowledge and skills to make their dreams come true, to make the world better. Because technology today is not the future, but an integral part of our daily lives, and the ability to handle computers and control them - an absolute necessity for successful coping with life!

The virtual and the real can merge dangerously if we don’t know how to manage ourselves and technology, and the school provides an opportunity to start learning from an early age. The toy robot becomes a useful tool and imperceptibly children learn and understand the features of terms such as algorithm, array, loop and graph. The training includes preparation in English to communicate with people around the world, but also to successfully enter the world of technology. Gradually, visual robot control environments are being replaced by real programming language. From 4th to 10th grade students study C++. The language is complex, challenging and highly valued in professional circles. Training is systematic, similar to foreign language training - it requires focus, diligence and years of practice.

Even the challenging period of the global pandemic cannot separate knowledge-hungry students from their academy teachers. Small groups (of six children) and personal attitude help a lot in the transition from face-to-face to online communication and vice versa. The training is complete and leads to impressive results. The representative team of the Nikola Tesla Academy - NiTe Games Studio managed to win a hackathon last year and an international competition for software projects for young people under 17, and students from the competition programming groups from Sofia and Varna, led by Prof. Krassimir Manev and Yulia Dimitrova confidently win awards from city and national competitions. For the teacher there is no greater reward than the success of his students and the personal achievements of each young person, as well as the confidence that through new knowledge the graduates of the academy are actively working towards their own future and fulfillment of plans and dreams.

In Plovdiv, the school will open its doors at the invitation of parents from the city, whose children have so far been educated entirely online. The founders found like-minded people under the hills,  not only among them, but also among their university colleagues, and together they hope to create conditions for children who have the ambition and desire to learn more and with pleasure.

Classes in Robo English, C++ programming and preparation for high school entry exam after seventh grade begin on October 1 and end in late June. The registrations are already going on ANT.bg, and for all those who are interested, dates for demonstration and trial lessons will be announced soon. The exact address of the academy in Plovdiv is 144a Shesti Septemvri Blvd., 3rd floor - LEVEL Center, opposite Saedinenie Square.