KEY INFORMATION
- A hypothesis is an educated guess about how things work.
- Most of the time a hypothesis is written like this: "If _____[I do this] _____, then _____[this]_____ will happen." (Fill in the blanks with the appropriate information from your own research.)
- Your hypothesis should be something that you can actually test, what's called a testable hypothesis. In other words, you need to be able to measure both "what you do" and "what will happen.
HYPOTHESIS CHECKLIST
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What Makes a Good Hypothesis? |
For a Good Hypothesis, You Should Answer "Yes" to Every Question |
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Is the hypothesis based on information contained in the Research Paper? |
Yes / No |
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Does the hypothesis include the independent and dependent variables? |
Yes / No |
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Have you worded the hypothesis so that it can be tested in the experiment? |
Yes / No |
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If you are doing an engineering or programming project, have you established your design criteria? |
Yes / No |
WRITING ANEXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE
· Write the experimental procedure like astep-by-step recipe for your science experiment. A goodprocedure is so detailed and complete that it lets someone else duplicate yourexperiment exactly!
· Repeating a science experiment is an important step to verify that your results areconsistent and not just an accident.
· Write your experimental procedure ona separate sheet then complete the checklist below.
Experimental Procedure Checklist
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What Makes a Good Experimental Procedure? |
For a Good Experimental Procedure, You Should Answer "Yes" to Every Question |
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Have you included a description and size for all experimental and control groups? |
Yes / No |
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Have you included a step-by-step list of all procedures? |
Yes / No |
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Have you described how to the change independent variable and how to measure that change? |
Yes / No |
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Have you explained how to measure the resulting change in the dependent variable or variables? |
Yes / No |
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Have you explained how the controlled variables will be maintained at a constant value? |
Yes / No |
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Have you specified how many times you intend to repeat the experiment (should be at least three times), and is that number of repetitions sufficient to give you reliable data? |
Yes / No |
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The ultimate test: Can another individual duplicate the experiment based on the experimental procedure you have written? |
Yes / No |