Writing the discussion section of a lab report is your opportunity to interpret your results and assess whether they support your hypothesis or take you in a new direction. This is where you explain the significance of your findings and place them within the broader context of your field.
By the end of the discussion, your reader should clearly understand the meaning of your results and why they matter.
Let’s go through the key steps to ensure your lab report discussion is both clear and insightful:
Step 1: Summarize Your Key Findings
Begin your discussion by highlighting your experiment’s main results, emphasizing those most relevant to your hypothesis.
For example, if you tested the effectiveness of a new study technique on exam performance, you might start with, “Our experiment demonstrated a 20% increase in exam scores among students who used the new technique compared to those who did not.” This provides a clear overview of the outcome.
Step 2: Interpret the Results
After summarizing your findings, delve into what they mean. Consider why the new study technique led to better performance. Did it encourage more effective retention of information, or perhaps it allowed students to manage their time more efficiently? Explore these possibilities and discuss how your results align with or challenge existing theories or expectations.
Step 3: Compare with Existing Literature
Once you’ve interpreted your results, compare them to what other researchers have found. Place your findings in the context of the broader field. If similar studies show a 15% improvement in exam scores with different techniques, discuss how your results contribute to or differ from this body of research and what those differences might indicate.
Step 4: Discuss Potential Limitations
No experiment is perfect, and acknowledging the limitations of your study is crucial. If your experiment had a small sample size or was conducted over a short period, discuss how these factors might affect the generalizability of your results. Being transparent about limitations demonstrates a thorough understanding of your research and its boundaries.
Step 5: Suggest Future Research
Finally, suggest areas for further investigation. If your study technique was effective but had limitations, propose a more extensive, longer-term study to confirm your findings. If unexpected results emerge, suggest exploring those anomalies in more detail. By recommending future research, you contribute to the ongoing development of knowledge in your field and highlight the potential for future discoveries.
