area of a rectangle is width time length so A = w*l
we know that 48 = w*l and than we multiplied every dimensions of the rectangle by a scale factor x so w*l*x the new area will be equal 12 inches square
w*l=48
x*w*l = 12
x*48=12
x = 12/48 = 1/4
so than result that this scale factor is equal 1/4
hope helepd
