Incorporating writing in advanced lab projects: A multiple case-study analysis

Scientific writing, in the form of lab notebooks, proposals, and reports, is a common element of physics lab classes. Multiweek student-designed projects are growing in popularity, especially in advanced lab courses, and writing may play a unique role in these types of courses. In prior work, we developed a framework of possible goals for writing in physics lab classes. Here, we use that framework as a lens through which to view three different advanced lab courses that include student-designed projects. We conduct a multiple case-study analysis to investigate how these courses incorporate writing to address various goals. We find that both the timescale and the open-ended nature of projects present unique opportunities for having students engage in authentic writing practices.

Figure 1

Framework for thinking about and understanding the role of writing in physics lab classes. There are fifteen goals organized into five overlapping categories. Adapted from Ref. [5].

Figure 2

Implementation of writing to address specific goals for each case. Writing used to address a category overall, but not a specific goal within that category, is indicated in the category heading row. “Course structure” indicates that the goal or category is addressed by the overall structure of the course and not by implementation of a specific writing assignment.