lab report introduction

lab report introduction

The Importance of a Well-Crafted Introduction in Lab Reports

1. 1. Understanding the Purpose of the Introduction

In thinking about what makes for a well-written introduction, many different issues can be considered. For instance, an introduction serves the purpose of presenting a clear rationale for undertaking a study and provides explicit statements as to the following: the research was done; the problem concerns, who it applies to, or what it provides; how it will meet the need; how it addresses a broader context; and why an introduction is a necessary component of a formal report.

In formal laboratory reports, the introduction is necessary because it provides a framework for understanding what a learner is studying. There are different pieces of experimental data reported in the scientific literature. However, without an introduction, hypotheses, and expected results, it is nearly impossible for a learner to fully understand what he/she observed. The introduction is a description of what was known or believed before the work was done. It provides important thoughts and background required to understand what is reported.

2. 2. Key Components of an Effective Introduction

3) Identify gaps in the literature: Because scientists must focus their inquiries into manageable areas, a narrowing of context often results. It is logical and expected that a broader and more general field would produce greater challenges to researchers. Scientists also attempt to understand the underlying processes which operate in nature and type them in as simple and general a way as they can. When a researcher tries to ascertain which variable is believed to be the major cause of a phenomenon or the major effect or result of nature, the research takes on a more powerful and directed form. It is the actual or apparent universalisms that set the field of science apart as the most privileged way of being able to discover the nature of things.

2) Summarize the literature: Develop a summary of the main ideas, currently accepted theory, or other related research. The purpose is to provide the reader with a background of the topic at hand so that your particular problem and scientific, practical or artistic issue(s) as they relate to the broader topic are clearly addressed. htonl it directly from its source.

1) Identify related research: Clearly describe other studies that are related to your research question. This is a sort of reverse dictionary approach. It is as close as you will come to consulting a source that takes you to the original research. Since the introduction is the first section of the report that the reader encounters, take this opportunity to establish the subject matter of the report.

To create an introduction that communicates the importance of scientific reasoning, here are the key components to include (in order of presentation):

Key components of an effective introduction

3. 3. Strategies for Writing a Compelling Introduction

3.2 Taking the next step: Be Explicit to Make it Out If your audience is not immediately able to make its eyes way from your outline to your hypothesis, reconsider and perhaps reconstruct. In a laboratory report, usually only one introductory paragraph is needed. Your introduction transcends daily living when put in direct address. On the macro level, too much focus leads to distraction, too little to neglect. Focus on the most important parts. Use your introduction to prepare your reader for what they will encounter in the remainder of your laboratory report. This is the place you can start to tie together the many parts of the laboratory report.

3.1 Getting into the Zone, “The Formula”: What we’re about to do this is like any kind of writing you’ve ever done in an experiment ever before. There is a formula for a brief introduction. Introduction needs to address (and sometimes, perhaps intimidate an introducee [the reader] about) the problem your investigation is bound by. Finally, with the newest problem revisited, the reader is introduced to the topic that is discussed in the laboratory report.

Perhaps one of the most effective strategies to addressing a compelling introduction involves writing in direct address. This is the equivalent to a thesis statement. It is something one must construct like scaffolding the first time. It becomes natural thereafter. This quick run down of concepts and strategies will make it easy and natural even enjoyable to craft a compelling and effective introduction to a laboratory report. Give your investigation fairness, justice, and an auspicious beginning.

4. 4. Examples and Case Studies of Successful Introductions

The introductory section of an ecologically focused lab report. With the increasing focus on incorporating ecology into the biology curriculum, it is important to determine whether or not the addition of field work labs serves to increase student interest and understanding of ecological principles. We looked at fourteen typical biology labs and restructured them to have a field or outdoor component. This increased the number of labs from four to eleven. We then tested the labs before and after in both large and small sections of the biology class. We also tested ARMT questions from the crucial curriculum to compare lesson plan results.

Our study will determine the effect of eco-lab design on student interest in labs. We are interested in comparing the success rates before and after the implementation of the new eco-lab, as well as the test grades of those who were successful. In addition, we are interested in the ARMT preparation of those who were in the eco-lab, as well as the training satisfaction of the teachers. Our hypothesis is that the use of eco-lab design in standard labs will increase the success rate of students on the biology ARMT. We hypothesize that preparing for and carrying out the eco-labs will help teachers prepare students for the ARMT with hands-on learning and teaching science process standards. We predict that student test scores from the quizzes and the ARMT will increase in respect to the lesson plan.

5. 5. Tips for Improving the Introduction in Your Lab Reports

Most lab reports should capture what, why, how, and what next. What is happening? Why is the event important? How will the pattern or trend be revealed using mathematical or statistical techniques or experimental design? What do the patterns or trends mean in the scientific sense? The What, Why, and How are usually included in the introduction. The What next or what does it mean serves as a quick summary of the rest of the lab and is the last section of the introduction.

The introduction of a lab report starts where the manuscript normally begins: the first page. However, the introduction does not merely introduce the lab. The introduction is a narrative that must direct a reader gently into the topic of the lab. Furthermore, the introduction should aim to orient the reader. By the end of the introduction, the reader should have a sense of why the subject matter of the lab is important to scientists and a sense of how mathematics, physics, and/or data will be used to provide insights about the subject.