A grade has 60 students going to a museum 15 miles away. They need transport under $200, reasonable travel time, and not too hard to organize. Option A: 3 school buses, costs $0, 45 minutes, set time. Option B: 15 parent cars, costs $0, 30 minutes, but hard to coordinate. Option C: 1 charter bus, costs $300, 35 minutes. Which solution offers the best balance of cost and ease?
- Option B because it is faster, even though coordinating 15 cars is complicated.
- Option C because it is comfortable and stays together, even though it costs $300.
- None of the options should be used because travel always takes too long.
- Option A because it costs $0 and is simple to organize, though it takes 45 minutes. (correct answer)
Explanation: This question tests selecting the most promising solution by evaluating options against criteria (NGSS 3-5-ETS1-2: Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem). Selecting the best solution means evaluating each option against stated criteria and choosing the one that best meets most or all requirements. Often no solution is perfect - each has pros and cons. Engineers look for the solution with the best balance, meeting critical requirements even if it has minor drawbacks. The "most promising" solution isn't necessarily perfect, but it's the best available option for the situation. Selection is based on criteria match, not personal preference. In this scenario, the criteria are under $200, reasonable travel time, and not too hard to organize. Comparing the options: Option A is free and simple but takes longer; Option B is free and faster but hard to coordinate; Option C is comfortable but over budget. Choice C is correct because Option A is most promising for these reasons: it costs $0 and is simple to organize, though it takes 45 minutes. While not perfect in every way, it offers the best overall match to criteria. Choice A represents focuses on one strength, ignores failures. Students who choose this may focus on one attractive feature without checking all criteria. To help students: Create comparison matrix with solutions in rows and criteria in columns. Check off or score each solution against each criterion. Ask: "Does it meet [criterion 1]? Criterion 2? Criterion 3?" Count how many criteria each solution meets. Teach that "most promising" means "best balance of meeting criteria," not "perfect in every way." Practice accepting trade-offs: "This solution meets all requirements but costs slightly more - is that acceptable?" Use decision-making language: "Option [X] is most promising because it meets [list criteria it meets], even though [acknowledge minor weakness]."