Short title

This Act may be cited as the

Innovations for our Nation’s Vital Educational Needs for Technology Act

Findings

The Congress finds the following: (1)Invention, the wellspring of innovation, is the basic source of the economic wellbeing and quality of life enjoyed in the developed world today. (2)There have been enormous differences in the capabilities of different societies to invent, to carry the inventions into practice, and to adopt the inventions of other societies, and maintaining those capabilities will be key for the future wellbeing of the United States. (3)Federal support of individual investigators doing basic research has been effective in leading to scientific discovery, but less effective in enabling those investigators to turn those discoveries into invention. (4)The process of invention and the traits of the inventive mind can be enhanced by education and fostered by appropriate societal support. (5)In formal education, every student deserves the opportunity to learn more about the nature of invention and to acquire some simple basic skills and generative attitudes.

Inventiveness curriculum materials

(a)

Establishment of program

The National Science Foundation shall establish a competitive grant program, with the goal of developing, and making available for use at the elementary, secondary, and undergraduate levels within 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, curriculum tools that will help foster inventiveness. (b)

Materials

The curriculum materials developed under the program established under this section shall— (1)leverage existing knowledge on how the inventive mind works on behalf of a more inventive society to address key challenges of today’s world, through— (A)emphasizing adventure, excitement, and mystery as much as the analytical and technical side of invention; (B)encouraging inventive thinking that crosses boundaries of convention, expectation, and disciplines; and (C)anticipating that there will be unanticipated consequences of invention, an enduring lesson from history; (2)strengthen those aspects of the education process that enhance creativity in general, and technological inventiveness in particular, including— (A)open-ended, problem solving assignments; (B)historical study of the social and political implications of inventions and new technologies; (C)universities seeking research projects and external collaborations, and policies that promote inventive creativity of students and faculty; (D)appropriate supporting infrastructure, which should be fostered to enable teachers to utilize new teaching methods and materials; and (E)hands-on activities, visual thinking experiences, historical case studies, and how things work exercises for all students, not just engineering or science majors; and (3)initiate, strengthen, and expand initiatives to involve young people directly in the invention process, including— (A)efforts to support teams in high schools and colleges that work collaboratively with the private or local government sectors to invent useful products or processes; (B)realistic, open-ended, design-oriented activities, which can be included in university engineering courses, with the primary goal of teaching the important principles of a field in ways that will promote inventive creativity in the application of these principles; (C)a network of community centers, invention homes, or free workshops that would provide access to the tools, materials, and flexible space so important to invention, to be based in schools, museums, or other locations; (D)workshops that would allow teachers to learn by experience how to effectively lead a project-based classroom; and (E)networks of innovators and social entrepreneurs both domestically and internationally. (c)

Dissemination

The National Science Foundation shall develop and implement measures, including workshops, for the dissemination of curriculum tools developed under this section.

Inventiveness public awareness campaign

Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the National Science Foundation shall implement a public awareness and outreach campaign relating to invention and inventiveness. The public awareness and outreach campaign shall— (1)foster public events, including competitions, public displays, traveling exhibitions, and other ways to increase the public profile of inventors and inventiveness; and (2)establish additional awards and prizes honoring inventors, with the objective of stimulating invention in areas of greatest need, as well as of raising the stature of inventors and invention in the eyes of young people.

Engineering and social science research program on invention

The National Science Foundation shall establish engineering and social science research programs on the process of invention and the teaching of inventiveness. The research programs shall— (1)be aimed at a deeper understanding of the creative mind and creative environment, the measurement of inventiveness, diffusion of teaching of inventive creativity, and rapid learning as part of the crossing of boundaries of convention, expectation, and disciplines that is at the heart of invention; (2)include study of the influence of flexible learning environments and role of parents, teachers, mentors, and broader social institutions; (3)study the impact on inventive creativity of past major programs of Federal and State support for elementary, secondary, and higher education; (4)identify the major societal sectors that have had significant effects on major inventions and innovations of the recent past, and study the role of each such sector, the importance of intersector interactions, and the impact of patent and other relevant law; and (5)assess how invention could make a difference to the sustainable development needs of the poorest regions and nations, including research to understand and promote social enterprise, cultivation of creativity on a local level, surveys of key technology gaps, and surveys of available financial resources.