Appendix A

Experimental Design: A Guide for Teachers

Introduction
Scientists often begin their work by asking a question for which they want to find an answer.
Different types of questions suggest different methods of scientific investigation.
Investigations can involve observing an object or an event, collecting specimens, seeking
more information, discovering new objects or phenomena, making models, or conducting
experiments. When students perform an experiment, they may be seeking to verify something
which is known, or they may be attempting to find the answer to a question of their own. In
each case, an experiment is designed to test a hypothesis and find an answer to a question.
Many activities students do in sixth grade science answer questions, but they are not
“experiments” as defined above. The experimental design model can only be applied to
experiments, not to the other types of activities explained above.

This section is an independent presentation of the entire concept of experimental design. The
Benchmarks and Indicators listed under Standard 4 (Design and conduct a scientific
investigation to test a hypothesis) describe the things that sixth graders must know and be able
to do. Students should be given experience with experimental design in sixth grade so that
they will be prepared for progressively more in-depth use of EDD in later grades, as a part of
scientific inquiry. For more information and many examples, refer to the book Students and
Research by J. Cothron, R. Giese, and R. Rezba (Kendall/Hunt, 1993).

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Brainstorming for Experiment Topics
The Four-Question Strategy provides a framework for helping students develop ideas to
investigate with an experiment. A brief description of each part of the strategy is given
below. This is followed by a demonstration of how to apply the strategy with students. A
blank copy has been provided for student use.

• Question 1 asks the student to identify a topic of interest and list the materials that might
be available to use in an experiment.

• Question 2 asks the student to identify what he or she knows about how this subject acts.

• Question 3 prompts the student to think about how the materials listed for question 1
could be manipulated/changed to affect the action (question 2). The item from this list
which the student chooses to change will become the independent variable for the
experiment. The other potential variables on this list will become the constants.

• Question 4 asks the student to think about how a response to the changed variable can be
measured or described. This process defines the dependent variable for the experiment.

Example:
1. What is a topic or subject that interests you? _ plants What materials could you use to
conduct an experiment on this subject?
soil
fertilizer
water
light
temperature
container
2. How does/do ___plants act?
Plants grow.
3. How can I change the ____plant _____ materials to affect the action?
type of plant
type of soil
type or amount of fertilizer
type or amount or scheduling of water
type or amount of light
level of temperature
type of container
4. How can I measure or describe the response of _____plants______ to the change?
Measure the height.
Count the number of leaves.
Determine the rate of growth.

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Using the Experimental Design Diagram (EDD)
The experimental design diagram is one tool which students may use to plan an experiment.
It is not intended to replace a lab report. The diagram reminds students to consider all aspects
of the plan as they write it in a simple format. For the teacher, it provides a quick way to
check whether the student has planned well to test only one variable at a time and to collect
valid data.

The standard experimental design diagram is set up in a logical order to show the whole plan
at a glance, but it is important to teach students that it is much easier to complete the parts in a
different sequence. More explicitly, after the specific assignment or the Four-Question
Strategy has led the students to define a problem to test, the first part of the diagram to
complete is the independent variable, followed by the dependent variable. At this point
students should specify the constants. A complete list of well-described constants is the key
to determining the procedure for a well-designed experiment. Students find that it is much
easier to write the title and the hypothesis after the other parts are decided.

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Completed Experimental Design Diagram

Title:
The Effect of Fertilizer on Plant Height

Hypothesis:
If the amount of fertilizer is increased,
then the average plant height will increase.

Independent Variable (IV): amount of fertilizer

Levels of the IV
(Label the level that 0 grams of 5 grams of 10 grams of 15 grams of
will act as control, if fertilizer per fertilizer per fertilizer per fertilizer per
there is one) liter of water liter of water liter of water liter of water

CONTROL
Repeated Trials 10 10 10 10
Dependent Variable (DV): average plant height in cm

Constants (Be sure to include measurements where needed)

plant type – 5 cm tall bean plants
planting containers – 500 cm3 clay pot for each plant
soil amount – 400 cm3 per pot
soil type – Brand X potting soil used for all plants
water source – tap
water amount – 100 ml per plant every 3 days
fertilizer type – Brand Y plant food used for all plants
fertilizer application – dissolved in tap water used to water plants
light – all plants are placed on a plant cart, 50 cm below 100-watt incandescent light
bulbs
temperature - 30°C

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Completed Experimental Design Diagram Discussion
Each part of the EDD is shown separately below and is accompanied by an explanation
and teaching suggestions. Refer to the “Completed EDD” on the previous page for
specific examples.

Title:

• One way to assure that the title accurately describes the experiment is to use this
form: The Effect of (Independent Variable or IV) on (Dependent Variable or
DV).

Hypothesis:

• The hypothesis predicts the relationship between the independent variable and the
dependent variable and is usually written as an “If…, then…” statement. As
mentioned above, the student should write the independent and dependent variable in
the diagram before writing the hypothesis. Then the process of completing the “If…,
then…” statement can be implemented in this way:

If the (IV) is (how the IV is changed in the experiment), then the (DV) will
(describe the predicted effect).

The hypothesis can also be written in question form. The relationship between the
independent variable and the dependent variable should still be included in the
question. For example: What happens to the (DV) when the (IV) is changed?

Students often avoid describing the prediction of the effect by using words like
change or vary rather than thinking through how changing the independent variable
will cause the effect. If they do leave out a prediction, then they don’t have a
meaningful hypothesis with which to compare their actual results. It is suggested that
after class members have written hypotheses for an experiment, the hypotheses
should be read aloud so that each one may be analyzed during a class discussion. In
this way students will practice identifying good examples and will learn to recognize
hypotheses which do not identify the variables or predict the results.

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Independent Variable (IV):

Levels of the IV
(Label the level that
will act as control, if
there is one)
Repeated Trials

• The independent variable, or manipulated variable, is one of several possible

variables which the experimenter has chosen to change. Referring to the Four-
Question Strategy, it is the one variable chosen from the answers to question 3 (How
can I change the set of ___ materials to affect the action?) which the student has
decided to test. All the other possible changes listed must be kept as constants for
this experiment. When the student decides how the independent variable will be
changed, these changes are listed as levels of the IV. Vertical lines should be drawn
within the “levels box” to make a smaller box for each one. These vertical lines
should be continued down through the box for repeated trials.

When the student designates the levels of the IV, it is also time to label the level
which will act as the control, if there can be a control. There are three ways to
consider how to designate a control. (1) In many experimental situations, the factor
which is the independent variable can be omitted, and that level of the variable will be
the standard of comparison for the other levels; it is called the control. If the purpose
is to determine how fertilizer affects plant height, one level of the variable should be
to omit the fertilizer, “no fertilizer,” and all other levels will be compared to this
control. (2) For some experiments, there is an outside standard which may be used as
the control (e.g., the recommended amount of fertilizer printed on the bag). (3) In
many experiments students choose to do, comparisons are made, and it is impossible
to omit the independent variable, so there is no control. Some will advise that the
experimenter may select the level which will be the control; others feel it is best to
say that for experiments which are merely comparisons and omitting the variable is
impossible, there will be no control. For instance, if the experiment is to compare the
effect of different soil types on plant growth, soil cannot be omitted, so there is no
control.

The number of repeated trials must be the same for each level of the variable, and,
for a classroom situation, the number of repetitions is limited by time. If several lab
groups are doing the same experiment, each group’s data may be considered as a
repeated trial to be averaged with the data from other groups. The purpose for
repeated trials is to reduce the effect of errors, therefore, more is better. As a
guideline for individual experiments, students should do a minimum of three repeated
trials for each level.

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 The EDD is a planning tool which allows students to visualize their thinking when
they are designing an experiment. For this reason, the box under the independent
variable is not to be transformed into a data table. Students must draw a data table
separately to correspond to the requirements for recording data for their experiment.

Dependent Variable (DV):

• The dependent variable or the responding variable is the variable which

responds to the independent variable. It is usually measured, and the unit of
measure should be indicated. In some cases, the dependent variable may be
counted or observed objectively. It may be necessary for the teacher to work with
students to develop specific descriptions or a scale with which to compare
nonmeasureable, or qualitative, results. (For example, if a color change is being
measured, a color chart could be used for comparisons.)

Constants (Be sure to include measurements where needed.)

• To be sure that the experiment will produce valid data related to the effect of
changing one independent variable, all other potential variables become constants.
All the possible factors which could have been changed have been identified in
question 3 of the Four-Question Strategy. Each of these factors must be specified
exactly. It is important to emphasize repeatedly when teaching students to plan an
experiment that what they write must be so clear that all people who read what is
written will know how to do the experiment the same way. For instance, it is not
enough to say “water” is a constant: the student must say how much water, what
type or source of water, and when the water will be applied or utilized.

This checklist may be of help when students specify the constants:

Location
Objects
ƒ size
ƒ how many
ƒ what kind
Settings
ƒ temperature
ƒ length, distance
ƒ angle
ƒ time
Procedures (“how to”)
Others ____________

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 The Four-Question Strategy

1. What materials are readily available for conducting experiments on _____________?

(topic)

2. How does/do ___________________ act?

(topic)

3. How can I change the set of ___________________ materials to affect the action?
(topic)

4. How can I measure or describe the response of ___________________ to the change?

(topic)

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 Experimental Design Vocabulary

1. variable – a factor which can be changed in an experiment.

2. independent variable (IV) or manipulating variable– the factor (variable) that is

purposely changed by the experimenter; the factor the experimenter decides to
change.

3. levels of the independent variable – the changes that are made in the independent
variable.

4. control – the level of the independent variable chosen as the standard of comparison;
this can be decided in one of three ways:
(1) the level at which the IV factor is omitted (0 of the IV)
(2) the level suggested by an outside standard (for example, according to package
directions)
(3) in the case of comparisons, the level selected by the experimenter (your choice)

5. repeated trials – the number of times the experiment is done for each level of the
independent variable; repeated trials are done to find average results and to reduce the
effect of errors.

6. dependent variable (DV) or the responding variable– the factor (variable) that
responds to the changes in the independent variable; it is measured, counted, or
observed objectively.

7. constants – all factors which remain the same for each repeated trial for all levels of
the independent variable.

8. title – a statement describing an experiment or data table; it may be written in the

form:
The Effect of (Changes in the Independent Variable)
On the (Dependent Variable)

9. hypothesis – a prediction about the outcome of the experiment which states the
relationship between the independent variable and the dependent variable, written as
an “If…, then…” statement.

If the independent variable (IV) is how the IV is changed ,

then the dependent variable (DV) will the predicted effect .

10. experimental design diagram (EDD) – a diagram which summarizes the plan for an
experiment and includes all of the parts defined above.

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 Experimental Design Diagram (EDD)
Title:

Hypothesis:

Independent Variable (IV):

Levels of the IV
(Label the level that
will act as control, if
there is one)

Repeated Trials

Dependent Variable (DV):

Constants (Be sure to include measurements where needed.)

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 Experimental Design Diagram (EDD) with Explanations

Title:
5.
The Effect of the ________(IV)__________ on
the _______________(DV)______________

Hypothesis:
6.
If the ____(IV)_______ is ___________________,
then the ______(DV)_________ will ____________.

Independent Variable (IV):

1. The thing ‘I’ change

Levels of the IV
(Label the level that Divide this into how many types of the
IV you have and fill in the amounts
will act as control, if
there is one)
3.
ex. 0 ml 10 ml 20 ml 30 ml

Repeated Trials
4. Fill in how many – should be at least 3!

Dependent Variable (DV):

2. The ‘data’ you will collect - measurements

Constants (Be sure to include measurements where needed)

List in bullet format all the things that must stay the
same to make the test fair… include units when you
can
7.
Ex.
ƒ Location
ƒ Temperature (20˚Celsius)
ƒ Distance
(The numbers in the left column refer to a suggested order in completing the EDD.)

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