- October 10, 2017
- Posted by: Nika Hines
- Category: Blog
More than 50 K-12 teachers participated in the 4th Annual National Summer Teacher Institute (NSTI) on Intellectual Property, STEM, and Innovation July 2017. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) Office of Education and Outreach in Denver, Colorado, hosted this year’s NSTI in partnership with the University of Denver’s Project X-ITE Team. NSTI is a weeklong entrepreneurial boot camp aimed to assist teachers on how to instill pioneering entrepreneurial potential within their students.
The programs above encourage future generations to create and invent. At the NSTI, teachers were trained and educated on how to educate tomorrow’s generation on entrepreneurship. The focus on this year’s boot camp was not only how to create an invention but also how to protect it. Educators were taught how to encourage their students to seek innovative results to a wide range of difficulties ranging from protecting the environment, design, and food. Groups were led by IP subject matter experts from the USPTO, innovative professionals from the industry, and government agencies. Later, each team pitched its invention to a panel of judges to see how well it did.
Students interested in mathematics, innovation, science, engineering, technology, computer science, and entrepreneurship are encouraged to have extensive knowledge and understanding of IP. NSTI boot camps also provide teachers with the tools and training they need to motivate students about inventions and IP protection.
Past NSTI participant Yolanda Payne explained, “Attending NSTI is a life-changing experience. It is a lot of hard work, but it’s fun learning new things…. At NSTI, you learn things you and your students will benefit from. It will make you a better teacher. Anything that captures students’ attention is winning for a teacher.”
We here at MMWV are excited that many educators are taking a strong interest in teaching tomorrow’s generation about Intellectual Property since children are the future.
More information about NSTI and its participants can be found at:
https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/outreach-and-education/national-summer-teacher-institute
https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/kids-educators/introducing-past-nsti-participant-doug-scott
https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/kids-educators/introducing-past-nsti-participant-tracy-vassiliev