Over the years, I’ve gotten tons of questions about lab write ups. And, at the beginning of my NGSS journey I thought about formal lab reports quite a bit. I was teaching high school chemistry and biology at the time. There was very little information on the standards besides the pdf of the standards and not much else. As a department, we were trying to streamline the process for writing lab reports in order to improve science writing.
The intention was good. But, I found that student lab reports were poor. Why? They really didn’t understand the practice of science. So, I decided to try something else all together. And, it paid off.
In this blog post, I’ll talk about the problems with traditional lab write ups and why they don’t work. And, I’ll explain what I did instead.
Lab Write Ups and the Scientific Method
I realized that teaching lab write ups didn’t work.
Why? Because I hadn’t ditched the scientific method.
Rather than focusing on the scientific method, the NGSS introduces a new dimension for teaching students the practice of science. These are called the Science and Engineering Practices.
I could do a LOOOOONG write up about why you should give up the scientific method. But, I’d rather save this space for discussing lab reports. So, if you want more information about the SM – check out this post.
How the Science and Engineering Practices are different
Instead, of writing up lab reports, students should be learning to use the Science and Engineering Practice. These practices should be used separately before they are using them together. Students should regularly be asking questions, planning and carrying out investigations, analyzing and interpreting data, and constructing explanations.
How the Science and Engineering Practices are Different
One of the major issues with the scientific method is that students are learning to use all of the components at once. Though some teachers spend a little time going over once piece at a time, students are almost always taught the entire scientific method all at once. Then, its broken into smaller pieces.
The science and engineering practices take this idea and flip it on its head. Rather than teaching everything together, they break the practice of science into tiny, digestible pieces. This allows students to get really good at these pieces before they are asked to use them together.
The Toolbox Analogy
When I talk about the Science and Engineering Practices, I like to talk about them like tools in a tool box. Each tool has their own specific design an purpose.
Now, imagine that I was teaching a construction class and I handed to you the entire toolbox. Then, I asked you to build me something. You might be able to do it, but you’d probably feel pretty overwhelmed in the process. And, you might not select the BEST tools for the job. Instead, you’d probably favor the ones your were more familiar with.
Instead, imagine that I provided you with specific instruction about one individual tool at a time. Once you learned to use these tools, I’d show you the differences between them and their ideal uses. Then, I’d teach you how to use them together.
Using the scientific method is similar to the first method of giving you all of the tools at once. However, with the science and Engineering Practices, students learn to use these pieces individually before being asked to put them together.
The SEP Matrix Provides a Roadmap
The NSTA Matrix shows the progression from Kindergarten through high school and explains what the practices will look like at each grade level. So, this document provides a roadmap that explains how students will learn how to use the practices over time.
In K-2 and 3-5, students are learning about the practices as individual components. Then, in middle and high school, students start using the practices together.
Why can’t my students do lab write ups?
Students should show mastery of the individual practices before they use them together. If your students got NGSS aligned science in elementary school, they may be ready to go. Unfortunately, they probably are just learning how to use these practices. Therefore, they aren’t actually ready for a lab write up.
YET.
Despite the headline on this post, there might be time when you can reintroduce write ups.
Does this mean that you should NEVER do a lab write up?
Absolutely not! The main point of this post is to explain that students need exposure to the practices and an opportunity to use them BEFORE you are asking them to write lab reports. Otherwise, your experience will be similar to mine and you’ll get low quality reports from your students.
However, when students who demonstrate mastery of the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices won’t need to follow a lab report template. Instead, these students should be allowed to choose which practices they will use to communicate their investigative design, data, and conclusions. For example, students may choose to collect move quantitative data or use modeling to show their observations from their investigation.
I think that, in most cases, students aren’t ready to put multiple practices together in elementary and middle school, especially considering that most of our students are new to NGSS and haven’t experienced it throughout their scientific careers. However, in higher-level courses, students should be taught how the practices are related and how they can be used together to effectively design investigations and communicate information.
Are you ready to learn more?
Check these out to get more information about the scientific method, NGSS, and the Science and Engineering Practices.
- Why the Scientific Method Doesn’t Align with the NGSS
- Teaching Science in 3D Podcast: How You Can Ditch the Scientific Method
- A Framework for K-12 Science Education
What are your thoughts on lab reports in an NGSS aligned classroom?
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