Include the following items in your formal report for your “Egg-speriment With a Cell”. Reports should be typed in size 12 font and double-spaced.
Title – Use the title given. The back of your handout in class has how to head your paper. See me if you need another copy. I am not posting that at this time.
Introduction – The introduction should be written in paragraph form and include a statement of the problem or the purpose for the study. Background information may be included if it is relevant to the study. Remember to include a works cited page if you include information from sources other than your textbook. When referring to your experiment, use past tense in your introduction. When you are relating background information, use present tense. Do not write using “I” or “we” statements in your reporting. The introduction should conclude with your hypothesis.
Materials and Methods – Use paragraph form to describe how you conducted your investigation. Use passive voice to describe what you did. (Ex. The egg was placed in a clear cup and covered with vinegar.)
Results – Describe the results using complete sentences. Refer to the specific data within the paragraph as you describe the results. Include the table of your data at the end of the paragraph. A graph of the measurements including liquids should follow the table. Remember to label your table and graph and refer to them by name. It is not necessary to tell every measurement that was made. Try to summarize your findings. If you have more than one trial (two eggs that were treated the same) consider averaging your two trials. Do not give an explanation for your findings in this section. Write in past tense because the experiment is finished.
Analysis of data- Give a thorough and accurate explanation of the results of the project. Provide diagrams to help with your explanation. Label your diagrams. Discuss why you observed what you did, how it happened, and how it relates to the purpose of the experiment. If something went wrong (egg was destroyed), include this information and explain how it may have affected the results. (Remember to add any resources that are used for creating the diagram or for explaining what happened to the Works Cited page that is added to the end of the report.) Write in past tense when describing your experiment and present tense when you are discussing current theory (diffusion, osmosis) to explain your observations.
Conclusion – Write a brief restatement of purpose and summary of results and accept or reject your hypothesis. Explain why. Remember that you should not say that your results prove anything to be true or false. You should say that your results support, confirm, verify, refute, contradict, etc. your hypothesis.
Works Cited is a separate page and lists your resources (using MLA format) in alphabetical order. See the Media Center blog at mabryonline.org (research) for help with format. For help with your graph try the site below or use Excel.