Talent Sandbox: How Preschoolers in Novosibirsk Are Learning the Digital World
A pioneering program in the Novosibirsk region introduces five-year-olds to coding, algorithms, and digital literacy — setting the foundation for a lifelong journey into technology.
What if IT talent could be nurtured straight from the sandbox? The Novosibirsk region in Russia is putting that idea to the test with an ambitious early education initiative. Children as young as five are now learning the basics of algorithmic thinking and digital tools long before they enter elementary school.
This ‘early start’ approach aims to create a seamless learning path—from preschool through IT-focused classes in secondary school and eventually into colleges and universities that train professionals for the real economy.
Early Immersion and Seamless Learning
The immersive environment is powered by a network of specialized digital hubs that go far beyond traditional classrooms. ‘IT Cubes,’ ‘Growth Points,’ and ‘Quantoriums’ are interactive learning spaces where theory meets hands-on practice. “Students engage in real-world IT projects to make informed career choices,” explained Yuri Petukhov, First Deputy Governor of the Novosibirsk Region. “Here, they can explore multiple fields of IT and represent the region at national and global competitions.”
This continuous education model is built around one principle: seamlessness. Students don’t lose their accumulated skills when moving between education levels — they build upon them, steadily advancing from foundational to specialized digital skills. The result is a cohesive, lifelong learning ecosystem for digital professions.
A Regional Experiment with National Potential
The Novosibirsk initiative serves as both an educational experiment and a prototype for potential nationwide rollout. If proven successful, it could evolve into a federally supported model or even a commercial consulting framework adaptable for other regions. Local IT companies play a crucial role in shaping the curriculum, offering internships, and mentoring students — effectively training future employees for their own industries.
This public-private collaboration forms a closed-loop ecosystem that aligns education with labor market demands. Ultimately, such systems act as catalysts for regional economies — nurturing talent that attracts investment and drives the growth of new tech enterprises. If scaled, this model could spark the emergence of full-fledged IT clusters across Russia.
The Long Game of Digital Education
Novosibirsk’s education leaders have been building this ecosystem step by step: first came IT Cubes and Quantoriums, followed by Growth Point centers. Each served as a testing ground for new teaching methods. The region’s success in implementing the federal ‘Digital Educational Environment’ project and ranking among Russia’s top 10 regions for digitalization in 2025 highlights its strategic consistency.
While other regions are only beginning to integrate IT into high school curricula, Novosibirsk is already reaching preschoolers. This ‘long game’ strategy emphasizes gradual immersion and continuous development of digital skills from the earliest stages of learning — ensuring that students not only learn numbers, but also understand the digital systems behind them.
From Learning to Doing
The flagship of the Novosibirsk system is the ‘Information Technology’ education and production cluster, created with federal funding under the Professionalitet program. It unites six educational institutions, with the Novosibirsk College of Electronics and Computing Technology at its center. Students work on real projects for partner companies — from semiconductor plants to telecom giants — and the region has launched dedicated programs in AI and even digital forensics.
To attract top educators, Novosibirsk introduced grants and salary bonuses for college teachers. The results are already tangible: students from the AI lab at IT Cube School No. 22 consistently win national and international competitions, proving that five-year-olds can grow into true digital natives through a well-designed educational system.
