Staples High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
Lab Report Format

Staples High School Mission Statement
We are a community of learners engaged in a quest for academic excellence and committed to civic and social responsibility.  We are unwavering in our belief that we must act with integrity and treat each other with respect.

Title    Problem     Hypothesis    Experimental Design
Data    Questions     Conclusion    Validity 

TITLE:   Some teachers require the writing of titles, others do not.    Top    Next

PROBLEM:   This may also be called the Purpose or Objective, and it may or may not be phrased as a question.  (e.g., “To find the relationship between . . .”)  In either case, the student must base the solution (conclusion) to the problem on an analysis of the data he/she collected.     Previous    Top    Next

HYPOTHESIS: A hypothesis is often referred to as an “educated guess,” which is a prediction that will be tested in the experiment. Not all teachers require a hypothesis.  Some may feel that a hypothesis predisposes a student to a biased outcome.  Those who do require a hypothesis should emphasize that a hypothesis that is subsequently disproved does not make the hypothesis a failure; there is no need to change the original (previously untested) hypothesis.   
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EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN:  This may also be called the Procedure or Experiment.   
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(Some teachers may require a separate Materials, followed by the Procedure, while others  prefer to incorporate the materials within the procedure.)  The ability to replicate an experiment is one of the cornerstones of the scientific process.  As such the materials & procedure must be clearly stated.

DATA:   These are the results of the experiment, presented in one or more of the following formats: tables, graphs, or drawings (the form the data takes is dependent on the experiment).   Previous    Top    Next

QUESTIONS:   A Questions or Analysis section, may be included here.     Previous    Top    Next

CONCLUSION:   The conclusion should make reference to the PROBLEM, HYPOTHESIS (if there is one), EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN (especially in terms of the validity of the DATA), and the DATA.  All conclusions should be driven by the data.  It is essential that the student discuss any factors that may have affected the validity of the data, and (depending upon the lab or teacher) describe how to improve the lab.    Previous     Top    Next

VALIDITY: Some teachers may prefer to have this separate from the CONCLUSION.    Previous     Top

Title    Problem     Hypothesis    Experimental Design
Data    Questions     Conclusion    Validity
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