Breakout Sessions

Sarah Stray (FIRST) & Chloe Callahan (Qualcomm)
Wright Room
Qualcomm is a long-time sponsor of FIRST, a global robotics community with multiple Pre-K-12 programs. They have been a presenting sponsor of multiple FIRST initiatives within their innovation education arena, including their flagship Global Innovation Award program and culminating event. Learn how they partnered to redesign the traditional Invention Education story from one focusing on what youth invented to one that focuses on relevancy and long-term impact for the youth and tech sectors. Together, they engaged multiple audiences to highlight the importance of educating the next generation of innovators to mutual benefit. Moving from the what to more deeply focus on the how and why allowed them to spotlight the student learning journey and express how critically important that learning is for industry. They will share examples of how this impactful narrative resonated both through the use of a Qualcomm led ‘innovation stage’ activity at the Global Innovation Award Ceremony and in all social media and marketing campaigns. After the presentation of this Case Study, participants will have a chance to share their own successes telling their own Invention Education stories externally and brainstorm how they might apply the newly learned narrative best practices within their own organizations.

Cristina Saenz (Lemelson-MIT), Evelyn Gomez (Lemelson-MIT) & Audra Skukauskaite (University of Central Florida)
Edison B
Less than 2% of patent holders in the United States identify as Latina. This is problematic considering the increasing Latinx population and the empirical evidence which indicates the benefits of drawing on diverse perspectives in the invention ecosystem. Little is known about Latina students who have participated in Invention Education. In this breakout session, we share the findings from Cristina’s dissertation, a narrative study which analyzed how the life experiences of three Latina students who participated on a high school InvenTeam contributed to their identity development as inventors. We also share the experiences of Evelyn Gomèz (copresenter), patent holder, MIT alumni, and former InvenTeam leader.

We will also discuss the different types of cultural capital young inventors draw on throughout the development of their identities. We make the case for utilizing Invention Education as an approach to engage Latinas and other underrepresented students in invention and STEM and we conclude our presentation by arguing that IvE should be embedded within the school day.

Brian Martin, Ruth Larson, and Kaitlin Lee
ISD 196, Minnesota
Edison A
Three teachers from Apple Valley, Minnesota discuss the implementation of a K-12 STEM Innovator Program in their pathway of STEM schools. They will share what is working, the challenges they face, and takeaways from their experience. The session will conclude with an audience-driven discussion of InventEd implementation.

Chelle Myrann (Phoenix Union High School District), Doug Scott (Hopkinton High School), Julie Panus (Plymouth Elementary School), Kristi Harris (High School)
Banneker Room
Come share in the journey of those who - after an immersive Invention Experience - returned to their teaching lives inspired and fundamentally transformed to infuse Invention Education into their classrooms and schools. Hear about the challenges and accomplishments after an initial involvement in Invention Ed and the ongoing transformation of individuals, forging of relationships and growing of programs. Participate in Invention Activities used in our classrooms and share your experiences of growing invention education.

Roxanne Moore (Georgia Tech) & Leslie Flynn (University of Iowa)
Edison A
We propose a definition of inventiveness to describe both attributes and student work products. We contrast inventiveness with analytical skills where methods and outcomes are typically known. To explore opportunities for inventiveness in curricula, subject matter experts evaluated 23 activities common in engineering design and entrepreneurship curricula and rated their expected student work outcomes with respect to inventiveness and analytical skills. We also evaluated nine problem statements from engineering design coursework with respect to their potential for resulting in inventive and analytical student work products. We contend that the inclusion of curricular elements that rate higher with respect to inventiveness are more likely to promote student engagement, particularly from underrepresented groups. This analysis may be applied when considering whether a curriculum is sufficiently promoting and rewarding inventiveness or inventive practices. We assert that as students advance from secondary to post-secondary schools and into multiple career pathways, their capacity and interest in engaging in innovation, invention, and entrepreneurial ecosystems will increase, thereby increasing equity in the designed world by empowering all student voices.

Jax Chaundhry (Project Invent)
Edison B
Every day we all face problems, large scale social issues to smaller daily routine problems. By framing these problems using design theory we can reinvigorate our classrooms and have real impact in our communities. The design theory process helps students understand the problem and empathize with the people who are affected, to come up with great ideas and build it into reality in our classrooms. We've learned how design thinking and student invention have led to increased joy, teacher engagement and innovation particularly following virtual learning. Learning design theory and applying it firsthand in this session can help educators and innovators alike reinvigorate classrooms!

Stephanie Couch (Lemelson-MIT), Melinda Kalainoff (Kalainoff Consulting and Research LLC), & Audra Skukauskaite (University of Central Florida)
Edison C
Access to opportunities for learning ways inventors find and solve problems that matter is critical for the next generation of inventors and entrepreneurs. Many invention education offerings take place afterschool or in summer camps. The need to work, care for family members, or lack of transportation may prevent many low-income students and Black, Latinx or other people of color from participation in such offerings. The inclusion of invention education offerings during the regular school day has been identified as a potential strategy for ensuring that all students are supported in their development as inventors in their K12 years. This session will share recent efforts to make invention education opportunities available within the school day at the high school level, and efforts to generate companion offerings at community colleges. Articulated offerings between high schools and community colleges create possibilities for students to be dual enrolled, thereby earning college credit for their work in high school. Students’ connection to two-year colleges also increases the likelihood that students will continue their education upon graduation from high school. The availability of offerings across high schools and two-year colleges will allow students to stay connected with educators and mentors who are critical to their success.

Amanda Potter (Destination Imagination, Inc)
Wright Room
Houston we have a problem! America watched in awe as NASA professionals worked diligently using limited resources to place a square cartridge into a hole intended for a round one and safely return their Apollo 13 peers to earth. Creativity aides in all sorts of problem situations. So, it’s time for educators to discover how to transform education to grow the next generation's creative power and start figuring out the best solutions for placing square pegs in round holes. Leveraging the creative process can be the most applicable and powerful tool for quick and simple solutions as well as the complex long-term. Experience rapid ideation and implementation as you maneuver the creative process first hand from recognizing the problem to celebrating the solution. Pair the creative process with the unique Destination Imagination elements of learning for an unstoppable approach to teaching others effectively while training learners' brains to do what brains are designed to do---create and innovate!

Becky Zeisel (KID Museum) & Jonathan Rivera (KID Museum)
Bell
Join KID Museum in an exploration of two invention-focused school programs for elementary and middle school students. KID Inventors, for students in grades two through four, centers creative problem solving and the engineering design process in the classroom, with students engaging in technical skill building and project development through field trips at KID. Invent the Future, a middle school program for students in grades six through eight, integrates skill building and project development into the class curriculum, with the majority of project development happening at school, and support offered in field trips to KID. Both programs have had to be reimagined as we navigate the transition back to in-person school. As these programs continue to evolve, we have learned that teachers’ voices and needs have to be centered in program refinement. This session will explore the structure of these programs and how they bring creative problem solving and Invention Education to the classroom, as well as how we engage teachers in the design and ongoing iteration of both programs.

Dawn Bowlus (Jacobson Institute) & Ethan Eagle (Innovatrium)
Banneker Room
Eleven educators across five states actively participated in an 8-week online professional learning program to promote Diversity Equity and Inclusion in Engineering, Invention, and Entrepreneurship. Participants engaged in action-based learning – identifying their own DEI-Invention/Engineering/Entrepreneurship project, developing a plan over the 8 weeks and implementing a pilot during the spring. This session will recap the major themes and activities taken from interviews with participants in the University of Iowa and The Henry Ford partnership action grant. Our discussion will highlight three recommendations for practice that emerged from analysis of the participants’ reflections on their experiences taken from interviews recorded in June 2022 about their project ‘implementation’ action. The necessity of convening with a purpose of creating safe spaces. The power of sharing among teachers, administration and support staff independent of ‘district representation’. A ‘right size’ inclusion curriculum doesn’t mean ‘one size fits all.’ At our session, we’re seeking individuals who are interested in joining, or who have led, communities of practice to engage participants to become deeper practitioners of DEI within the engineering, invention, and entrepreneurship spaces.

Doug Scott (Hopkinton High School) & Vicky Pasquantonio
Edison D
This interactive session will feature a live Twitter Chat with everyone attending being able to participate in real time! The #InventEdChats session would feature an IE topic and demonstrate the ability to stay connected and learn year round as an IE community. This past year the #InventEdChats was piloted and was successful. This breakout session is focused on growing the number of participants and teaching those new to Twitter Chats how easy and fun it is from the comfort of their own homes. This interactive session will feature a live #InventEdChats Twitter Chat with everyone in attendance and those attending virtually being able to participate in real time! #InventEdChats = #Fun = #ConnectedCommunity