Ashford 5: – Week 3 – Assignment
Outline of the Final Lab Report
Carefully review the Grading Rubric that will be used to evaluate your assignment before you begin.
You are required to develop an outline for your Final Lab Report, which covers all three experiments for “Lab 2: Water Quality and Contamination.†To begin, carefully review the instructions for your Final Lab Report assignment located within Week Five. Next, download the Outline of the Final Lab Report Template and utilize this form to ensure proper formatting and inclusion of all required material. Note that the outline should be written in paragraph form and should not simply be a list of bullet points. Using the template will ensure proper formatting. You must use at least four scholarly sources and your lab manual to support your points. The outline must be three to five pages in length (excluding title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style. For information regarding APA samples and tutorials, visit the Ashford Writing Center, located within the Learning Resources tab on the left navigation toolbar.
The Outline of the Final Lab Report must contain the following seven sections in this order: Title Page – This page must include the title of your report, your name, course name, instructor, and date submitted. Introduction – This section should outline why the experiment was conducted. At a minimum, it should contain three paragraphs. One paragraph must cover background information of similar studies that have already been done in the area. This is accomplished by citing existing literature from similar experiments and explaining their results. A second paragraph should provide an objective or a reason why the experiment is being done. Why do we want to know the answer to the question we are asking? A third paragraph should provide a hypothesis for each of the three experiments conducted. Materials and Methods – This section should provide a detailed description of the materials used in your experiment and how they were used. A step-by-step rundown of your experiment is necessary; however, it should be done in paragraph form, not in a list format. The description should be exact enough to allow for someone reading the report to replicate the experiment, but it should be in your own words and not simply copied and pasted from the lab manual. Results – This section should include the data and observations from the experiment. All tables and graphs should be present in this section. Additionally, there should be at least one paragraph explaining the data in paragraph form. There should be no personal opinions or discussion beyond the results of your experiments located within this section. Discussion – This section should interpret or explain the meaning of your data and provide conclusions. At least three paragraphs should be outlined here. First, a paragraph should be present that addresses whether the hypotheses were confirmed or denied and how you know this. Second, you are to discuss the meaning of your findings in this area utilizing scholarly sources to put the paper into context. For example, how do your results compare with the findings of similar studies? Also, you should discuss any future questions arising from your results and how you might test them. Finally, you should discuss if there are any outside factors (i.e., temperature, contaminants, time of day) that affected your results. If so, how could you control for these in the future? Conclusions – This section should provide a brief summary of your work. References – Provide a list of at least four scholarly sources and your lab manual that will be used in the Final Lab Report. Format your references according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
Note: An abstract must be included in the Final Lab Report. However, the abstract should not be included in the outline as it is to be written last after the entire paper is fully written. Do not forget this in your Final Lab Report. SCI207.W3A1.08.2013
Description:
Total Possible Score: 10.00 Title Page
Total: 0.25
Distinguished – Provides a title page that includes the title of the report, course name, student’s name, instructor, and date submitted.
Proficient – Provides a title page that is missing one required component.
Basic – Provides a title page that is missing two required components.
Below Expectations – Provides a title page that is missing three or four required components.
Non-Performance – Fails to provide a title page. Outlines Introduction
Total: 1.25
Distinguished – Outlines a thorough introduction that includes background on the topic, an objective of the study, and a hypothesis for each of the three experiments. The outline of the introduction is at least three paragraphs long and fully supported with information from scholarly sources.
Proficient – Outlines an introduction that includes background on the topic, an objective of the study, and a hypothesis for each of the three experiments. The outline of the introduction is at least three paragraphs long and supported with information from scholarly sources. Minimal improvement is needed through additional detail, enhancement of source material, and/or rewording of hypotheses.
Basic – Outlines an introduction that includes background on the topic, an objective of the study, and a hypothesis for each of the three experiments. The outline of the introduction is at least partially supported with information from scholarly sources. Moderate improvement is needed through additional detail, enhancement of source material, and/or rewording of hypotheses.
Below Expectations – Outlines an introduction, but it requires major revisions to background and source material, objectives, and/ or hypotheses. One or more of the required components may be missing.
Non-Performance – Fails to outline an introduction that includes background on the topic, support from scholarly sources, an objective of the study, and a hypothesis for each of the three experiments. Outlines Materials and Methods
Total: 1.25
Distinguished – Outlines a materials and methods section that thoroughly details in one’s own words how to repeat the experiments from the Week Two Laboratory.
Proficient – Outlines a materials and methods section that details in one’s own words how to repeat the experiments from the Week Two Laboratory. Minor details are missing or some excessive information is present.
Basic – Outlines a materials and methods section that details in one’s own words how to repeat the experiments from the Week Two Laboratory. Intermediate details are missing or excessive information is present, limiting the repeatability of the experiments.
Below Expectations – Outlines a materials and methods section, but major details are missing, significantly limiting the repeatability of the experiments, or steps are largely copied from the lab manual.
Non-Performance – Fails to outline a materials and methods section. Outlines Results
Total: 1.25
Distinguished – Outlines a thorough results section that includes all of the tables utilized in the laboratory as well as at least one paragraph describing the data.
Proficient – Outlines a results section that includes all of the tables utilized in the laboratory as well as at least one paragraph describing the data. Minor errors are present in the tables or details are missing or inaccurate in the description.
Basic – Outlines a results section that includes all of the tables utilized in the laboratory as well as at least one paragraph describing the data. Moderate errors are present in the tables, details are missing or inaccurate in the description, or personal opinions are included.
Below Expectations – Outlines a results section that includes tables utilized in the laboratory as well as a description of the data. Major errors or omissions are present in the data tables, details are missing or inaccurate in the description, and/or personal opinions are included.
Non-Performance – Fails to outline a results section that includes data tables and a description of the data presented. Outlines Discussion
Total: 1.25
Distinguished – Outlines a thorough discussion that addresses whether the hypotheses were accepted or rejected, the meaning of the findings, future studies generated from the results, outside factors impacting the results, and methods to control these confounding variables. The outline of the discussion is at least three paragraphs long and fully supported with information from scholarly sources.
Proficient – Outlines a discussion that addresses whether the hypotheses were accepted or rejected, the meaning of the findings, future studies generated from the results, outside factors impacting the results, and methods to control these confounding variables. The outline of the discussion is at least three paragraphs long and supported with information from scholarly sources. Minimal improvement is needed through additional detail, enhancement of source material, and/or correction of minor inaccuracies.
Basic – Outlines a discussion that addresses whether the hypotheses were accepted or rejected, the meaning of the findings, future studies generated from the results, outside factors impacting the results, and methods to control these confounding variables. The outline of the discussion is at least partially supported with information from scholarly sources. Moderate improvement is needed through additional detail, enhancement of source material, and/or correction of inaccuracies.
Below Expectations – Outlines a discussion, but it requires major revisions to the content and source material, and/or correction of significant inaccuracies. One or more of the required components may be missing.
Non-Performance – Fails to outline a discussion that includes whether or not the hypotheses were accepted or rejected, meaning of the findings, future studies generated from the results, outside factors affecting the results, and methods to control these confounding variables. Outlines Conclusion
Total: 0.75
Distinguished – Outlines a conclusion that thoroughly and accurately summarizes all three experiments and reiterates key findings.
Proficient – Outlines a conclusion that summarizes all three experiments and reiterates key findings. Minimal improvement is needed to accurately summarize the experiments.
Basic – Outlines a conclusion that summarizes all three experiments and reiterates key findings. Moderate improvement is needed to accurately summarize the experiments.
Below Expectations – Outlines a conclusion that summarizes the experiments, but may not reiterate key findings. Significant improvement is needed to accurately summarize the experiments.
Non-Performance – Fails to outline a conclusion that summarizes all three experiments. Written Communication: Control of Syntax and Mechanics
Total: 1.50
Distinguished – Displays meticulous comprehension and organization of syntax and mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. Written work contains no errors, and is very easy to understand.
Proficient – Displays comprehension and organization of syntax and mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. Written work contains only a few minor errors, and is mostly easy to understand.
Basic – Displays basic comprehension of syntax and mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. Written work contains a few errors, which may slightly distract the reader.
Below Expectations – Fails to display basic comprehension of syntax or mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. Written work contains major errors, which distract the reader.
Non-Performance – The assignment is either nonexistent or lacks the components described in the instructions. Resource Requirement
Total: 1.50
Distinguished – Uses more than the required number of scholarly sources, providing compelling evidence to support ideas. All sources on the reference page are used and cited correctly within the body of the assignment.
Proficient – Uses required number of scholarly sources to support ideas. All sources on the reference page are used and cited correctly within the body of the assignment.
Basic – Uses less than the required number of sources to support ideas. Some sources may not be scholarly. Most sources on the reference page are used within the body of the assignment. Citations may not be formatted correctly.
Below Expectations – Uses inadequate number of sources that provide little or no support for ideas. Sources used may not be scholarly. Most sources on the reference page are not used within the body of the assignment. Citations are not formatted correctly.
Non-Performance – The assignment is either nonexistent or lacks the components described in the instructions. APA Formatting
Total: 0.50
Distinguished – Accurately uses APA formatting consistently throughout the paper, title page, and reference page.
Proficient – Exhibits APA formatting throughout the paper. However, layout contains a few minor errors.
Basic – Exhibits basic knowledge of APA formatting throughout the paper. However, layout does not meet all APA requirements.
Below Expectations – Fails to exhibit basic knowledge of APA formatting. There are frequent errors, making the layout difficult to distinguish as APA.
Non-Performance – The assignment is either nonexistent or lacks the components described in the instructions. Page Requirement
Total: 0.50
Distinguished – The length of the paper is equivalent to the required number of correctly formatted pages.
Proficient – The length of the paper is nearly equivalent to the required number of correctly formatted pages.
Basic – The length of the paper is equivalent to at least three quarters of the required number of correctly formatted pages.
Below Expectations – The length of the paper is equivalent to at least one half of the required number of correctly formatted pages.
Non-Performance – The assignment is either nonexistent or lacks the components described in the instructions.
