Math Activity: Solving Open-ended problems with mathematical modeling

If your students have access to the Internet, this is possible.                                                                   Video series explaining and showing what mathematical modeling is.

Open-ended problems are real-world, complex problems that do NOT have a SINGLE correct solution. Instead, these are problems that require a mathematical model (a set of equations) that address a more complex situation than what we normally would give students, and must use assumptions relevant to the problem in order to begin developing the model. These are like the actual problems professional applied mathematicians develop. Depending on the assumptions one starts with, viable solutions will be different from person to person. 

There is a competition that allows students to have a chance to try this process, and attempt to develop a possible solution to open-ended problems. This site has all sorts of resources, including an Archives page that has numerous examples of this type of problem AND the top six solution papers for each problem; and a Resources page with booklets, videos, teaching guidelines, and examples of what math modeling is and how to approach it. 

For high school/secondary aged students, these types of complex problems and the process of developing mathematical models based on assumptions, data and other evidence, can expose students to actual real-world problems that can only be approached in this manner, and allow students to apply what they've learned in STEM classes over the years in a more practical way.