Mid-Prairie Middle School sixth grader, Maelys Beachy, earned a prestigious invitation to participate in a global academic competition with students from around the world in the 2021 Future Problem Solving International Conference. Maelys was selected to represent Iowa after her 2nd place scenario writing finish at the State competition. She was one of 138 scenario writers from around the globe to participate.
The conference was held virtually June 9-14th, kicking off with the opening ceremony flag procession and guest speaker, Kimberly Bress, an FPS alum working in neurotechnology. Students from 44 affiliate programs and 11 countries were represented at the conference.
The theme of the 2021 International Conference was “neurotechnology.” Maelys was hard at work between June 7-10 for the scenario writing competition. Competitors were tasked with writing a spontaneous 1,000 word or less story based on a future scene that was posted on the topic of neurotechnology. Writers were evaluated on creative thinking, futuristic thinking, idea development, style, voice, character development, mechanics, and research.
There were a number of additional experiences beyond the competitions. The 3D virtual platform opened on the 10th for participants to move around a virtual conference center, “meet” other participants, view projects, read about sponsors, and collect mementos from around the world. Students, parents, and coaches were invited to join in on sessions and collaborative discussions held through the zoom platform on topics such as “Neurotechnology: Through the Lens of Hollywood,” “Problem Solvers as Leaders: It’s all About Teamwork,” “The Scenario Writing Process,” Balancing Divergent & Convergent Thinking for Effective Creative Problem Solving,” and “Scenario Champs Interactive Session.” The conference culminated with a Facebook Live Watch Party Awards Ceremony on Monday, June 14.
Event videos and results can be found at www.facebook.com/fpspi and www.fpspi.org