In this Model-Eliciting Activity (MEA), students are asked to analyze data and provide a procedure that can be used by New Wave Farms in order to choose the best vegetable to plant as their first trial with their new soil. The students are to provide the company with a written document showing the order considered to be the best value for their money to the least value, the step by step procedure used to determine the rank order, and an explanation of which category is considered the most important when making the ranking and why.

Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. MEAs resemble engineering problems and encourage students to create solutions in the form of mathematical and scientific models. Students work in teams to apply their knowledge of science and mathematics to solve an open-ended problem while considering constraints and tradeoffs. Students integrate their ELA skills into MEAs as they are asked to clearly document their thought processes. MEAs follow a problem-based, student-centered approach to learning, where students are encouraged to grapple with the problem while the teacher acts as a facilitator. To learn more about MEAs visit: https://www.cpalms.org/cpalms/mea.aspx