Teaching Successful Problem-Finding and Problem-Solving

Burt Swersey, Rensselaer Polytechnic

Over the past fifteen years, we have learned to help students improve Institute their ability to recognize needs that others have not seen and create innovative, patentable designs that satisfy these needs. Recent emphasis has focused on using technology to create products that improve the quality of life for the people in the world who have the greatest needs. Students have graduated, taken the lessons learned with them, and become intrapreneurs and agents for change in existing companies. Some have started new ventures to manufacture and sell their products. A number of the successful principles, techniques, and exercises we use are presented in this session, including templates and rubrics for grading.