_{Writing Better Lab Reports}

To improve your lab report, ask yourself these questions:
Q1.  Have I followed the format?

Q2.  Is my hypothesis clearly stated and to the point?

Q3.  What is the biological significance of my hypothesis and how is it relevant?

• Have I considered the implications of my experiment to a larger issue of biology?

Q4.  Have I adequately described my experimental design? 

• are the treatments clearly stated and specific?

• have I included the number of replications? 

• have I described how I collected the data?

• have I reduced the use of pronouns?

Q5.  Are my results presented clearly? 

• is my figure or table labeled correctly,

• are my data summarized,

• is the overall presentation as neat as I can make it,

• have I prioritized the important aspects of my results and focused on overall trends and variability?

Q6.  Does my discussion present a conclusion that supports or rejects my hypothesis?

• Did I defend my conclusion with the most important results?

• Have I critiqued my experimental design to identify areas that may have contributed to experimental error?

Writing Tips and student paper examples.