Background. The research of the student attitude to the system of supplementary education is of  paramount importance as it is the system of supplementary education where the adolescent tries to implement specific "cultural tests" that allow him/her to obtain an inverse social reaction regarding his/her personal success (success as a subject of activity).

The Objectives of the research are as follows: 1. Determining the influence of age, social demographic factors on the involvement of adolescents in the system of supplementary education is the objective of the research. 2. Defining the motives determining the occupations of students of the secondary and high schools in the circles, studios, sections. 3. Studying the influence of the student involement in the system of supplementary education on their studies.

Research Progress. The paper presents the results of the research carried out by the Center for the Sociology of Education of the IEM RAE in October-November, 2017. The sample includes 11,803 school students of 7-11^th grades of the Leningrad region, Russia. Questions concerning the student involvement in the system of supplementary education, paid vs free school classes in various circles, studios, sections, preferences of certain areas of supplementary education, variety of motives that make students get interested in different types of extra classes are discussed. The influence of extra classes on the studying activities (academic success, student status in the classroom, peculiarities of motives involved).

Research Results. In the system of supplementary education, every second student of the secondary and high school is engaged. The educational status and financial position of the student's parents influence his/her involvement in the system of supplementary education. The influence of macro-indicators (settlement factor) is marked as preference in the field of studies and also within the payment strategy of the educational services provided. Among the main motives for attending classes there are the following ones: broadening the horizons, assessing the abilities and opportunities.

Conclusion. The most important motive that causes adolescent interest in various types of jobs and occupations in the system of supplementary education is to catch up with the lack of knowledge obtained in school. The student’s involvement in the system of supplementary education also sets a positive vector for his/her development as subject of the studying activity. 

The paper is devoted to the issue of mechanisms of learning for understanding the nature of the human mind. Learning is regarded as a special activity that is important for developing the human mind in a specific cultural and historical setting and indirect activity. The author’s understanding of the ideas developed by the psychological theory of activity for establishing the principles of developing the human mind is highlighted. Interpretation of dialectical connections of brain processes and mind, and also the objective activity that emerges them is provided.

According to the activity theory, the causes of the students’ psychological difficulties and the low efficacy of learning within predominant reproductive method or the use of the trial and error method are revealed. Thus, a new understanding of the renowned didactic principles of scientific rigour, accessibility, objectivity, the connection of learning with life and others is offered. The contribution of the psychological theory in organizing and managing the studies, increasing teaching activity and awareness, and the growth of the internal causes of motivation are shown.

Particular attention is paid to the issue of intellectual development and creative abilities. The author believes the creative abilities of the student and the way the latter are taught are interconnected. At the same time, the developers and educators should make efforts to develop in the students a systemic orientation in the subject, primarily mastering the method of system analysis. Once the method of system analysis has been mastered, it becomes a general intellectual and developing tool through which activities are organized to solve any teaching problems with whatever type of content and difficulty level.

Summing up, the organization and disclosure to the student of the process of learning as an activity with its social, consciously transformative and sense shaping meaning, the conditions of its development and their significance for consciousness development and the organization of life, opens the possibility for students to move to the top of the personality development.

The objective of the paper is to research the relations between psychological and didactic requirements for designing training technologies of ensuring the educational results specified by the Federal State Educational Standards of a new generation.

A necessity of solving three interrelated tasks is highlighted. The first task is aimed at selecting achievements of A.N. Leontiev’s academic school by to further include them into the psychological training program of educators. The second one is directed at realizing the “projection” of psychological theory provisions into the system of didactic notions. The third one consists in developing educational methods of various study fields on the basis of the novel didactic knowledge and experimental verification of these methods.

The general approach to solving the tasks mentioned is proposed hereunder. The most important principles of A.N. Leontiev’s theory for the sphere of education have been emphasized.

It is suggested to introduce a number of notions in didactics to be adequately described in the activity structure. A set of methods for the developing students’ learning activities, which is the basis of their main ability (the ability to learn), is proposed.

Educational technology in the activity paradigm achieves educational results that are legitimated in the Federal State Educational Standards. The model of developmental education has been probated within the educational program “Small Academy of Lomonosov Moscow State University”, and also in the works of a number of school experts who were involved in the experiment.

Specific features of temporal perspective and value-semantic orientations (including consistency of relevant values and their availability) in high-school students depending on the type of dominant motivation was studied.

For all students, it is shown that time perspective of their aspirations and desires differs by depth, length and positive orientation to the future, but these representations are qualitative specifics depending on the type of dominant motivation. For the group of students with achievement motivation and learning and cognitive motivation, values of educational activity are well coordinated and are seen as a means of realizing long-term goals for adulthood.

For the group of students with affiliation motivation, prestige and competition, values of learning are often accompanied by internal conflicts and vacuums. In high school students with the prevailing cognitive motivation the near future is associated with the values of freedom, self-confidence, self-improvment, overcoming obstacles, friends.

Their aspirations in the distant future are related to self-development, self-improvement with achieving success and confidence. Students with competitive motivation are characterized by a large number of targets in the distant future, without reference to a specific time and implementation, i.e. their school-life motivation decreases.

Aspirations of students with self-reinforcing learning motivation in the near future are most often focused on studies, but they are associated with a desire to achieve quite definite exam results.

To their mind, distant future is associated with overcoming obstacles and status and competitive values. Students with affiliation motivation associate their distant future with career, and also with status and competitive values of «authority», «to be better than others». Their motivation associated with the present and the immediate future period of school life also decreases.