Outline of the Final Lab Report

Review the Final Lab Report instructions (BELOW)in Week Five of the online course or in the “Components of Course Evaluation” section of this guide as well as the Sample Final Lab Report. I would also recommend you review Week Two’s Laboratory, “Water Quality and Contamination,” before beginning this assignment. You are then to write a complete outline for your Final Lab Report.

The outline must contain:

a.       Title Page
Include the same information as the Final Lab Report (see instructions in Week Five).

b.      Introduction
Provide an outline of your introduction including background, objective, and hypothesis, as well as all sources that will be used to back this information.

c.       Materials and Methods
Provide an outline of steps used to conduct the experiments as well as all sources used to conduct the experiments.

d.      Results
Provide an outline of results, including any tables and graphs that will appear in your Final Lab Report

e.       Discussion
Provide an outline of discussion, including meaning of findings, outside factors effecting results, and future experiments based on results.

f.       Conclusions
Provide an outline of the summary of all work.

g.      References
Provide a list of references in APA format.

Note

: The abstract should not be included in the outline as it is to be written last after the entire paper is fully written.

The outline must be three to five pages in length and formatted according to APA style. You must use at least four scholarly sources (at least two of which can be found in the Ashford Online Library) in addition to the textbook and/or lab manual to support your points

Final Lab Report

Please read over the Sample Final Lab Report before beginning this assignment. You are required to write a complete laboratory report for Lab 2: Water Quality and Contamination using knowledge gained throughout the course. The report must be 6 to10 pages in length and formatted according to APA style. You must use at least four scholarly sources (at least two of which can be found in the Ashford Online Library) in addition to the textbook and/or lab manual to support your points. Cite your sources in text and on the reference page. For information regarding APA samples and tutorials, visit the Ashford Writing Center, located within the Learning Resources tab on the left navigation toolbar.

The Final Lab Report must contain the following eight sections in this order:

1. Title Page – This page must include the title of your report, your name, course name, instructor, and date submitted.
2. Abstract – This section should provide a brief summary of the methods, results, and conclusions. It should allow the reader to see what was done, how it was done, and the results. It should not exceed 200 words and should be the last part written (although it should still appear right after the title page).
3. Introduction – This section should include an overview of why the experiment was conducted. It should first contain background information of similar studies that have already been done in the area. This is accomplished by citing existing literature from similar experiments along with explaining their results. Secondly, it 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? Finally, it should end with a hypothesis. You should pose a question and predict the answer to the question that will be investigated. This hypothesis should be made prior to your experiment and should not be adjusted to reflect the “right” answer. Simply place your previous hypothesis in the report here.  You do not lose points for an incorrect hypothesis; scientists are often wrong in their guesses.
4. 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 run down 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.
5. Results – This section should include the data and observations from the experiment. All tables and graphs should be present in this section. There should be no personal opinions or discussion outside of the results located within this area.
6. Discussion – This section should interpret your data and provide conclusions. Discuss the meanings of your findings in this area. Was your hypothesis confirmed or denied, and how can you determine this? Did the results generate any future questions that might benefit from a new experiment? Were there 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?
7. Conclusions – This section should simply provide a brief summary of your work.
8. References – List references used in APA format.

Writing the Final Lab Report
The Final Lab Report:

1. Must be 6 to 10 double-spaced pages in length, and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
2. Must include a title page with the following:
   1. Title of paper
   2. Student’s name
   3. Course name and number
   4. Instructor’s name
   5. Date submitted
3. Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement.
4. Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.
5. Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.
6. Must use at least four scholarly sources, including a minimum of two from the Ashford Online Library.
7. Must document all sources in APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. ab manual to support your points. Cite your resources in text and on the reference page.