Using an alternative report format in undergraduate hydrology laboratories

Across the nation, undergraduate faculty and staff in the sciences are being called upon to examine traditional laboratory practices. The Vee map is a graphic organizer that is a viable alternative to one component of the traditional laboratory, the laboratory report. It consists of a large Vee with six areas: Focus Question, Word List, Concept Map, Events, Data and Data Transformations, and Conclusions and Claims. The Focus Question guides the investigation, while the Word List and Concept Map reveal prior knowledge. The Events area is a description of the plan students devise to answer the Focus Question. The collected data are recorded and analyzed in the Data and Data Transformation area, findings and results of the investigation are described in the Conclusions and Claims area. Students proceed through these areas in the above mentioned sequence as they engage in an open-ended laboratory investigation. As students complete a Vee map, they contemplate their prior knowledge, engage in the process of knowledge construction, and build meaningful knowledge. Ultimately, a Vee map is a tool that assists an instructor in creating a more interactive and student-centered laboratory report.