THEMES AND PROBLEMS
MIDDLE SCHOOL
When a decision is made by a member to compete in an event, it is imperative that the member thoroughly read and understand the rules, regulations, procedures, and evaluation criteria for the chosen event(s). National TSA is responsible for addressing mistakes or discrepancies in the competitive event guides and accomplishes this through competition updates on the TSA website. National TSA is not responsible for interpreting, advising, or suggesting ways that a member might develop a viable response or solution to a competitive event challenge.
- Audio Podcasting
- Biotechnology
- Career Prep
- Challenging Technology Issues
- Children's Stories
- Coding
- Construction Challenge
- Cybersecurity
Audio Podcasting
Theme: Breaking News from the Future
Students create an audio podcast reporting on a fictional future event, discovery, invention, or crisis as if it is happening live.
Biotechnology
Theme: Biotechnology in Food
Biotechnology can be used to improve crops, make food last longer, or create new types of food. Explain how biotechnology is used in food production and describe one way it could help farmers or consumers.
Career Prep
Choose a career from the Career Clusters Digital Technology category within one of the following subclusters:
- Data Science & Artificial Intelligence
- Information Technology (IT) Support & Services
- Network Systems & Cybersecurity
- Software Solutions
- Unmanned Vehicle Technology
Challenging Technology Issues
- The Use of AI to Write News Articles
- Requiring Coding as a Core Subject in Middle School
- Virtual Reality Replacing Physical Labs in High School Science Classes
- Medical Tourism as a Means of Accessible Treatment Options
- Robots in Elderly & Child Care
Children's Stories
Coding
To prepare for MS Coding competition, teams should have knowledge of concepts (software development, computer science, and coding topics) that will be on the Coding written test. They also should be familiar and comfortable with using the Scratch programming language.
Scratch is a free visual programming language available from the MIT Media Lab (https://scratch.mit.edu/download). An offline version of the Scratch tool should be downloaded and available on each team’s laptop.
Teams that advance to the semifinalist level, based on written test performance, will perform a challenge using the Scratch programming language. Semifinalist teams will receive the challenge on site and will have two hours to complete it. (PLEASE NOTE: Semifinalist teams MUST have a version of this program available for offline use, as there will be no Internet access available during the semifinalist level of the competition.)
Examples of the types of challenges students may be asked to complete can be found at this link: https://scratch.mit.edu/starter-projects
Construction Challenge
Theme: Your team has been tasked to design an urban community greenhouse and garden appropriate for a densely populated city neighborhood. The facility must fit entirely within a narrow 25 ft by 100 ft footprint and safely accommodate 20-30 community members simultaneously. The design must leverage at least two sustainable architectural or engineering practices. Describe the specific practices and design choices made to build the greenhouse within these constraints.
Cybersecurity
Problem Statement: FinStream Technologies is a fast-growing financial technology startup. During a routine audit, the security team notices anomalies in the network logs. A senior software engineer who recently submitted their two-week notice has been downloading unusually large volumes of proprietary source code and client financial data from the cloud repository to a local workstation and subsequently transferring it to an unencrypted external USB drive. Analyze the immediate actions required to secure the data, investigate the scope of the exfiltration, and recommend policy changes.
HIGH SCHOOL
- Photographic Technology
- Prepared Presentation
- Promotional Design
- Robotics
- Software Development
- STEM Mass Media
- Structural Design and Engineering
- Transportation Modeling
Photographic Technology
Theme: Behind the scenes
Prepared Presentation
Promotional Design
Theme: Milestone Diner, a new retro-inspired American diner, is preparing for its grand opening. You have been hired to create a cohesive brand identity and promotional materials that celebrate the diner's nostalgic 1978 inspiration while attracting today's customers. The restaurant's branding should reflect a nostalgic late-1970s aesthetic while remaining inviting, family-friendly, and appealing to a modern audience.
The following items are the required design pieces:
Item #1 – Restaurant Logo
Design a logo for Milestone Diner. The logo should be submitted enlarged on an 8.5" × 11" sheet of paper (portrait or landscape, designer's choice). The logo should establish the restaurant's visual identity and be appropriate for use across all required promotional materials.
Item #2 – Restaurant Menu
Design a bifold restaurant menu for Milestone Diner using tabloid-size paper (11" × 17"). The menu should be designed so the front and back panels are correctly positioned for printing and folding. Participants should create original menu item names, descriptions, and pricing appropriate for a classic American diner.
Item #3 – General Manager Business Card
Design a single-sided business card for the General Manager of Milestone Diner. The business card should reflect the restaurant's established brand identity while presenting the required contact information in a professional, well-organized layout.
Item #4 – Instagram Grand Opening Advertisement
Design a static Instagram graphic (4:5 vertical ratio) promoting the Grand Opening of Milestone Diner. The advertisement should capture attention, encourage attendance, and maintain the restaurant's established visual identity.
Use the following details for the design challenge:
Restaurant Name: Milestone Diner
Address: 1978 Celebration Boulevard
Orlando, FL 32819
Phone: (407) 555-1978
General Manager: Delmar Olson
Email: manager@milestonediner.com
Grand Opening Date: July 1, 2027
Robotics
Software Development
Develop a software application that improves how people learn, teach, practice, or develop new skills. Competitors should identify an educational or training challenge affecting learners of any age and design an engaging, effective, and user-centered software solution.
STEM Mass Media
Headline: Scientists link human right-handedness to walking upright and brain evolution
Most humans favor their right hand, but scientists have long debated why this pattern is so common across cultures. Unlike humans, other primates do not show the same strong population-wide preference for one hand. A new Oxford-led study published in PLOS Biology suggests that human right-handedness may be connected to two major steps in human evolution: walking upright on two legs and the expansion of the brain. Researchers analyzed data from 2,025 individuals across 41 species of monkeys and apes, using evolutionary modeling to compare possible explanations for handedness, including tool use, diet, habitat, body size, social behavior, brain size, and locomotion. Their findings suggest that as early human ancestors became more fully bipedal and developed larger brains, right-handedness became increasingly common. The study also raises new questions about why left-handedness still exists and whether similar patterns of limb preference in other animals may have evolved in comparable ways.
Prompt:
Based on the following headline, develop a news broadcast that includes an introduction of the headline, a summary of the information in the news story, and an explanation of potential future implications of the highlighted work.
Structural Design and Engineering
Transportation Modeling