Keyword: «declining interest in physics»

The steady long-term decline in the interest of high school students in physics in the Russian Federation is confirmed by the statistics of the Unified State Exam (the number of participants decreased from 207 thousand in 2014 to about 90 thousand in 2023-2025), PISA and TIMSS results, and expert assessments. One of the key reasons is that the laboratory workshop, especially in electrodynamics, does not match the current state of science and technology: the works remain "museum–like", ignoring digital signal processing, optical and wireless technologies, and semiconductor electronics. At the same time, the conceptual documents proclaim the achievement of technological independence, but the orders of the Ministry of Education on equipment and textbooks are focused on traditional means, not supporting relevant scientific trends. The aim is to analyze the alignment of the electrodynamics laboratory course content with modern science and to develop an updated course that integrates both physical and virtual experiments. Methods: comprehensive analysis of Rosobrnadzor data, regulatory and content analysis of scientific and pedagogical sources, comparative analysis of Russian and American (AP Physics C/E&M) programs and laboratory work based on a review of publications in Physical Review Physics Education Research, American Journal of Physics, The Physics Teacher, and pedagogical modeling. Results. The fundamental contradiction between the goals of physical education and its resource provision has been revealed. The foreign approach is characterized by the systematic use of digital sensors, microcontrollers, project-based activities and mandatory engineering projects (Capstone Projects). The inclusion of four areas in the workshop is justified: radiophotonics, metamaterials, quantum communications, and wireless energy transmission. A model of the faculty course "Modern Electrodynamics: from experiment to technology" (grades 10-11, 68 hours) with 14 laboratory work has been developed - from measuring the data transfer rate over optical fiber to the basics of quantum cryptography. The theoretical significance lies in the substantiation of updating the practical course, taking into account modern scientific trends and the overarching theme of "information generation, transmission, and processing." Practical significance is the ready–to-test educational and methodological complex for schools using the equipment of the centers "Point of Growth" and "Quantorium", consistent with the objectives of the national project "Education" and the decisions of the congress "UCHPROM-2025".