Laboratory Journal

Everyone will be required to keep a good record of their activities in their journal. An ideal journal is one that has gridded lines to allow graphs to be drawn. We will show you examples that will provide you with a record of just about everything you do in PHYS 611. If you are unsure whether something belongs in the journal, please ask an instructor. All experimental data and results are to be recorded in your journal. You are allowed to print out results and tape or staple them into your journal. The journals will be periodically collected, read, and graded. You should be prepared each day at the end to turn in your journal for overnight grading. WORK IN YOUR JOURNAL SHOULD BE IN PEN, NOT PENCIL. DO NOT ERASE. IF SOMETHING IS INCORRECT, PLEASE MARK THROUGH IT.

 Besides being valuable for assessment, journal writing is a powerful catalyst for thinking. Writing does help clarify and organize one's thinking. Writing can even create ideas that did not exist before the writing began. The writing must be done carefully and legibly so the instructor has no trouble reading it. Journal writing will improve your ability to use scientific words appropriately, to focus attention on the most important concepts, and to increase your recall of generalizations. Students will be expected to write down their reflections every day on the day's activities. This may include what was learned, what was found surprising, how the information might be useful, and suggestions for improving the activity. THE REFLECTIONS WILL BE PART OF THE JOURNAL GRADE.