Biology A Molecular Approach
Scientific Lab Write-up Rubric
You will write your scientific lab write-up progressively over several weeks. Each section will be due
after you complete certain tasks in lab. Please refer to the syllabus. Each section will be graded by your
professor and returned to you to provide feedback, and to allow you to correct the section. This rubric
must be handed in each time you hand in a new section and when you hand in your final write-up. It is
your responsibility not to lose the rubric. It will be reused for every section of the lab write-up and it is
thus a cumulative document.
The purpose of this rubric is to provide to you some feedback about your reports in a cohesive manner.
You may find additional comments on the report if more space is needed. If so, it will be noted in this
rubric as “see report”.
Student name- ___________________________________
Draft (60% of final grade for write-up):
Total grade FormattingTotal grade AbstractTotal grade IntroductionTotal grade Methods SectionTotal grade Results Section
Total grade Discussion SectionOverall Total Draft GradeFinal Lab Write-up (40% of final grade for write-up):
Total grade FormattingTotal grade AbstractTotal grade IntroductionTotal grade Methods SectionTotal grade Results Section
Total grade Discussion SectionOverall Total Final Lab Write-up Grade-
Criteria for Grading:
0-did not meet requirements, 1-met some requirements, 2-met most requirements, 3-met all
requirements, 4-exceeded requirements
1
1) Followed the instructions for formatting:
AFont size (12pt)
B1 inch margins all the way around the pages
CDouble spaced
DSpelling/grammar
Examples shown and general comments:
E- Included all tables for material and methods and data
Comments:
F- Included necessary figures
Comments:
G- All graphs/tables/figures have a title
H- All graphs/tables/figures have a legend
I- All graphs/tables/figures have labeled axes
Comments:
2) Abstract:
A- Abstract was 1 or 2 paragraphs
B- Stated hypothesis clearly
Comments:
2
C- Stated in a few sentences how study was performed
Comment
D- Major findings, discoveries and conclusions noted
Comments:
E- Was the abstract a complete overview of the work?
Comments:
F- Did the writing flow and make sense?
Comments:
3
Suggestions to improve the abstract:
3) Introduction:
A- Stated purpose overall for experiments
Comments:
B- A sound statement of hypothesis was clear and obvious
Comments:
C- Background Information was included, for example (this is not an exhaustive list):
a. What is heartworm and related organisms/viruses found in heartworm?
b. How do related organisms/viruses contribute to diseases?
c. Who gets the disease?
d. What is the disease?
e. What is PCR?
f. How can PCR be used to detect the organisms/entities?
Comments:
D- Did the writing flow and make sense?
Comments:
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E- Did the student select words that allowed them to use as few words as possible but still retain
meaning?
Suggestions to improve Introduction:
4) Materials and Methods Section:
A- Described procedures in their own words
Comments:
B- Described procedures in enough detail for someone to repeat the experiment
Comments:
C- Procedures were subcategorized, like “DNA Extraction” or “Polymerase Chain Reaction to
detect…”, etc.
D- Did the writing flow and make sense?
Comments:
Suggestions for improvements of Methods Section:
5
5) Results Section:
A- All data was presented
Comments:
B- All observations were presented
Comments:
C- Necessary tables, graphs and figures were present?
Comments:
D- Necessary tables, graphs and figures were appropriately labelled?
E- Clearly stated major findings in text
Comments:
F- Did the writing flow and make sense
Comments:
Suggestions to improve the Results Section:
6
6) Discussion Section:
A- Discussed significant findings
Comments:
B- Interpreted existing knowledge in light of the findings (as learned in lecture/lab or read in
textbook).
Comments:
C- Identified surprises and technical difficulties and identified how to revise experiments to
troubleshoot
Comments:
D- Did the writing flow and make sense
Comments:
7) Other:
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A- References cited appropriately
B- Professional Appearance (neat, clean, easy to read)
Comments:
8