In the educative Model Tec21 of the Tecnologico de Monterrey (challenge-based learning) students are quested to acquire disciplinary and transversal competencies through practice and collaboration with a training partner. This training partner is generally industry or public institutions. In the case of the formation unit AG3001B Bioproduction in controlled environments, the training partner was CAETEC (Experimental Agricultural Field from Tecnologico de Monterrey, Spanish acronym). CAETEC is a living laboratory focused on the practice of techniques and theory seen in class to maximise the experiential learning of students.

The use of Design of experiments applied to real data provided by the greenhouse of the CAETEC allow to students not only the acquisition of knowledge of the technique but also the experiential opportunity to interact with the plants and not only with values provided by a book.

This innovation way for the teaching-learning experience permitted the students of higher education to analyse the Roma tomato. The students of this formation unit worked in the Greenhouse to measure different effects of tomato plants to generate important information to analyse easily the development of crops, so that they could suggest important decisions on the nutrition required and the management of greenhouses to provide optimal conditions for production. Among the most important data recorded were the length of the plant, dimensions and number of leaves, number of clusters and open flowers, stem thickness and internode lengths for 5 different varieties of Roma tomatoes.

Keywords: Higher Education, Educational Innovation, Design of Experiments.