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5 Tips on Writing a Discussion Section for a Lab Report

Sarina Jones
Written by Sarina Jones
Posted: May 22, 2021
Last update date: June 17, 2024
10 min read

Most lab report papers contain several specified sections. It does not matter if you are assigned to write a report for organic chemistry, biology, physics, or another discipline – you will generally have to follow the same standard structure of the work. It starts with an introduction. In the Introduction, a student describes their vision and thesis statements. The abstract is a short explanation of what readers can find in your paper. The Methods section allows you to present the approaches and methodologies you used during your experiments; in the Results section, a scholar is required to display the findings he has reached in the course of conducting his experiment.

Then come the discussion section paragraphs. If you wonder how to write it for your paper, you should be able to analyze all previous sections of your document. By reading them and making deductions, you discuss the results of the research and its findings. Both results and discussion lab report elements are essential.

What is a Discussion in Lab Report?

A discussion in a lab report is an obvious thing. This refers to the part where you will have to summarize all the results you have discovered in the testing. You will also want to link these to the hypothesis you have presented and also to use them in context with other research and in the dedicated field. It is one of the most important things all students who must complete a laboratory report need to know. If or when you have to write a college lab report, use these facts and details. Keep in mind that it is the essential part of your paper and the one that can make a massive difference. Many of you have, what is the discussion section of a lab report question, stated as the main one.

Structure of a Discussion Section

When working on the discussion part of a lab report, you need to know all about the main stages or sections. There are 5 of them, and we will cover each one so that you can learn the basics in no time. A good report of this kind means that you have followed all the rules and you made all parts look precisely as needed.

Present your findings first

Yes, the first step here is to present all the findings you were able to find. This is mandatory, and it makes your paper look and feels professional. At the same time, it will intrigue the readers and provide them with an instant but partial answer. Now you can see why discussion in a lab report, especially this part, is so important. Here we can add that writing an introduction for a laboratory report has a huge role in the overall success or grade of your paper.

Result interpretation is next

Here you need to answer a few basic questions. One of them does these results make sense. Why were they possible? In this lab report discussion section, you need to prove that your results are valid and they are actual. You need to prove that to the readers.

Reveal possible implications

At this stage, you will have to reveal if there are any implications for your findings. Can they be used for something, and how can they be used? Be free to use any theories on your mind and try to be original. Write why and how your experiment can make the world a better place. Use multiple sub-sections if possible.

Understanding and revealing limitations

Your experiment and your findings or the use of these two have limitations. You will need to present and focus on the discussions here in order to make readers know about limits. In simple words, tell readers what your findings or your results cannot be used for.

Further research proposition

Now you will have your own theory of why your findings are essential. You can write about how and why other students and scientists need to perform further research. This part of the discussion also makes your paper look more professional, which is something you want. All of this is one of the reasons why a lot of students need to write lab report for me option these days and why a lot of them will need it in the near future as well.

How To Format a Laboratory Report Discussion Element?

There are no specific requirements for the formatting of this part of the paper. However, you should ask your teacher to know what formatting style is good. For example, specific universities use the APA style, but there are also many other styles popular in other universities. Learn how to write a discussion in a lab report in a needed or mandatory format.

When writing a discussion for a paper of this kind, your first step is to double-check the guidelines for the outline of your document. It lets you understand the right place for this section in your paper and how big it should be. You will also know how much of a brief summary of your results need to be presented here.

If you need to know the requirements for a specific section, you should check the guidelines for the laboratory report paper. Most probably, you have to use the formatting style, page numbering, and font size that you have used in all other chapters. We can see this for almost all discussion and analysis lab report papers. With the help of our article, you can master lab reports in minutes. If you are not certain about this, use the essay writing service, and you will get a paper done that meets your requirements and answers the topic properly.

Your teacher may not tell you all the formatting rules. They just tell you what style you should use, and it is not a problem. You just can check out our site and find out how to format specific elements of your document to meet the requirements of a specific style. And even find out an example of a discussion in the lab report and learn from it.

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Writing a Discussion Part for a Lab Report: Useful Tips

Here are a few tips that can help you more than you may believe. You can use this in the discussion section of the lab report and on the whole paper, and you will certainly get a positive comment. Let’s see the best tips available for students.

  • Don’t repeat things too much

Do not repeat specific ideas too often. Even if you are sure that they are significant, it doesn’t mean that you should repeat them many times. Also learn to present ideas in a less boring format.

  • Provide a clear point of view

Be clear in your writing. Present your thoughts and opinions in an understandable format, and all your readers will get your point of view. Read your paper a few times to check how it sounds and whether it is appealing to potential readers. Writing lab reports is complicated, so invest a lot of time.

  • Compare the results

In this chapter, you can make references to earlier research. You are able to use other studies to support your thoughts. You can also compare the results of your experiment with other studies. You will get accurate observations in seconds.

  • Repeat main facts

Repeat the key phrases and narrative style that you used at the beginning of your document. It helps you show how your research helps you prove the thesis statement and that you work with a few key ideas. It can make an experiment look more professional as well.

  • Repeat thesis statement

You are able to repeat your thesis statement and the main goals of your research. It helps readers understand your mission better, even if they’ve been reading your document for a long time and don’t remember everything you wrote in the introduction. But don’t discuss the same thing all the time.

  • Reveal future research goals

It is good to state your ideas for later research; it may be a small college paper, but later other scientists could use it as a basis for their studies. That is why you should think about how your laboratory experiment will be helpful to others.

  • Use a proper number of results

Don’t add more parts to this chapter. You should put all your findings and interpretations in an appropriate section. If you forgot to add specific paragraphs, just go back to Results to write them. Now you know what is discussion in a lab report and how you should implement it.

Writing a discussion for a lab report can be a challenging task, so if you’re feeling overwhelmed, the best thing to do is to break it down into smaller steps. As you go through the process, make sure to take notes and document your findings along the way. This will help you organize your thoughts and structure your discussion. After collecting your results, it’s time to do my assignment and start writing the discussion. Focus on explaining the key points and discussing any trends or patterns that you observed. Be sure to include any unexpected results and explain why they occurred. Finally, be sure to provide your own interpretation of the results and explain any implications that they may have.

What Not to Include in Your Discussion Section

When working on a discussion for a lab report, there are some things you must avoid using here. This is not a conclusion or into, so there is no need to make a mistake and present some of the things we will reveal below. You need to write a few basic things here. In general, you need to present all the findings you got and how they are linked to other findings. All the rest is a mistake. Still, some students include the following elements.

  • Results

Never include the results of the discussion of a lab report in this section. You have a special section where you will need to provide an abstract and write the details. You need to interpret the results, which is the step after you have presented them.

  • Methodology

Never use or mention methodology in a discussion of a lab report, this part has its own purpose, and the methodology doesn’t have a place here. The methodology has a separate part, so there is no need to present it here. The discussion part has its own purpose, and the methodology doesn’t have a place here.

  • Hypothesis

This can be used in the lab report introduction but not here. Using the hypothesis again in this part will be a huge mistake and something that can get you a lower grade. Write the things you need to use only.

All of this will help you format a lab report properly and end up with the result that you need and want to present to your professor.

Any Other Questions about a Lab Report Discussion Section?

The discussion part for a laboratory report is usually a crucial part of this document. That is why you should pay much time analyzing results and making a deduction. It can be difficult for many students that don’t have this experience.

Students are able to use special services for writing a laboratory report with other sections, and this way is much easier. It helps save time so you can spend it on learning or other things you want to do. Once you know all about discussion and conclusion lab report elements, you can make all this much better and get a better grade.

If you use such services, you can ask PapersOwl writers to “write my lab report for me,” and they will do whatever you need. This solution is appropriate for students who don’t have the necessary knowledge or environment to write their lab reports on time.

FAQ

  • What’s the difference between the results section and the discussion?

The difference is massive. In the results section, you will present your findings only. In the discussion part, you will put them into perspective and interpret them. It is the next step once you have revealed all the findings. Do not mix these two together, or you will make a serious mistake. Check out a sample or two to get a better idea.

  • How many words should a discussion be in a lab report?

If writing lab reports is a huge thing for you, keep in mind that this section should be 500 words. This is not a massive number, as you can see. In some cases, a teacher can give you more room to write or instruct you to use more words to explain the part of the paper. But most of the time, it is limited to 500, so don’t go over it.

  • Which comes first in a lab report, the conclusion of the discussion?

Discussion is the part you will have to complete before you move to the conclusion. The conclusion is the last part of the paper, and this refers to almost all paper types, and types of writing students will have to do. In this case, the lab report conclusion is the last, and students will need to use 200 words to complete it.

  • What’s the difference between the discussion and the conclusion?

In the discussion, you will present the findings and their meaning. You can also present new perspectives and ask new questions. In conclusion, you will have to summarize the paper in general. It is a broader part of the essay and a smaller one.

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