Global Issues Problem Solving
Team Problem Solving
Under the guidance of a coach or coaches, teams of four participants in grades 4-12, or adults beyond the high school level, use the FPSP six-step model to explore challenges and propose action plans to complex societal problems. Topics are selected by the vote of participants and coaches. Current topics can be found under the "Current Topics" website heading. The International Conference topics will be announced in the Spring of each year.
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Teams are divided into four divisions:
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Grades 4 - 6 (Junior)
Grades 7 - 9 (Middle)
Grades 10 - 12 (Senior)
Adult - (post high school)
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Teams complete two practice problems and one qualifying problem throughout the school year. Trained evaluators score student work and return it with feedback including suggestions for improvement. The top scoring teams on the qualifying problem will be invited to the state bowl, the date and location to be announced soon. The winners in each division will advance to the FPSP International Conference in June.
Individual Problem Solving
A student may work individually rather than as a member of a team. An Individual completes all six steps when preparing a booklet, the work load is reduced for some steps. Practice Problem 1 requires only four challenges, one underlying problem, four solution ideas, three criteria for evaluation, three solutions on the grid, and an action plan. For Practice Problem 2 and the Qualifying Problem competitors generate eight challenges in step one and eight solution ideas in step three. In step five, the individual applies criteria to four solution ideas to determine the best solution for his/her action plan.