NSES Content Standard E
Science and Technology: Abilities of technological design 
Grades 9-12, page 192 

Propose designs and choose between alternative solutions. Students should demonstrate thoughtful planning for a piece of technology or technique. Students should be introduced to the roles of models and simulations in these processes. 
 

 
Benchmark 2B The Nature of Mathematics: Mathematics, Science, and Technology
Grades 9-12, page 33
Mathematical modeling aids in technological design by simulating how a proposed system would theoretically behave.

Benchmark 3B The Nature of Technology: Design and Systems
Grades 9-12, page 52
In designing a device or process, thought should be given to how it will be manufactured, operated, maintained, replaced, and disposed of and who will sell, operate, and take care of it. The costs associated with these functions may introduce yet more constraints on the design.

Benchmark 3B The Nature of Technology: Design and Systems
Grades 9-12, page 52
To reduce the chance of system failure, performance testing is often conducted using small-scale models, computer simulations, analogous systems, or just the parts of the system thought to be least reliable.

Benchmark 11B Common Themes: Models
Grades 6-8, page 269
Models are often used to think about processes that happen too slowly, too quickly, or on too small a scale to observe directly, or that are too vast to be changed deliberately, or that are potentially dangerous.

Benchmark 11B Common Themes: Models
Grades 6-8, page 269
Different models can be used to represent the same thing. What kind of a model to use and how complex it should be depends on its purpose. The usefulness of a model may be limited if it is too simple or if it is needlessly complicated. Choosing a useful model is one of the instances in which intuition and creativity come into play in science, mathematics, and engineering.

Benchmark 11B Common Themes: Models
Grades 9-12, page 270
Computers have greatly improved the power and use of mathematical models by performing computations that are very long, very complicated, or repetitive. Therefore computers can show the consequences of applying complex rules or of changing the rules. The graphic capabilities of computers make them useful in the design and testing of devices and structures and in the simulation of complicated processes.

Benchmark 12E Habits of Mind: Critical-Response Skills
Grades 9-12, page 300
Suggest alternative ways of explaining data and criticize arguments in which data, explanations, or conclusions are represented as the only ones worth consideration, with no mention of other possibilities. Similarly, suggest alternative trade-offs in decisions and designs and criticize those in which major trade-offs are not acknowledged.