Scientific Method Rubric

What?  In science, students need to learn that most scientific discoveries are not revealed by random chance.  Most breakthroughs are the product of a systemic procedure that is followed religiously by all scientists.  This system is called the Scientific Method.  The students in my class will learn to use the scientific method in all of their experiments and will use this rubric to evaluate themselves and their peers.  This rubric demonstrates CSTP Standards 5.1, 5.3, and 5.4.

So what?  CSTP Standard 5.1 states that we should clearly identify the goals of each assignment before the students start the assignment. The Scientific Method Rubric clearly states how their laboratory report should be formatted.  It identifies what each section should say, how it should be said, and how many points it is worth.  CSTP Standard 5.3 encourages students to evaluate their own work.  With this rubric the students know exactly what their report should include and can grade it themselves.  There final grade on the project is predictable.  CSTP Standard 5.4 encourages the use of assessment results to help guide the student instruction.  Students can evaluate their own work or have it evaluated by another student or even the teacher and then use the results of the evaluation to guide where they will travel next in their experiment.