Scorae › Rubrics › Lab Report Rubric (Grades 9-12 Science)
Lab Report Rubric (Grades 9-12 Science)
Use this for a full written lab report in high school biology, chemistry, or physics where students collected their own data and the handout named the required sections. Points are weighted toward data presentation and conclusions, since that is where most reports actually come apart.
- Grades 9-12
- Subject Science
- 100 points
- 5 criteria
- Free to copy, print and adapt
| Criterion | Exceeds | Meets | Approaching | Beginning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purpose, Question, and Hypothesis15 points | 14-15 ptsStates the testable question, gives an if-then hypothesis naming the independent and dependent variables, and gives a reason for the prediction drawn from prior knowledge. | 11-13 ptsStates the question and a hypothesis naming both variables, but gives no reasoning behind the prediction. | 8-10 ptsGives a hypothesis that restates the lab title or predicts an outcome without naming what was changed and what was measured. | 0-7 ptsStates no question or prediction, or copies the handout's purpose statement as the entire section. |
| Procedure, Variables, and Controls15 points | 14-15 ptsLists numbered steps another student could repeat with the same equipment, names the independent, dependent, and at least two controlled variables, and states the number of trials. | 11-13 ptsDescribes the steps in enough detail to repeat and names the independent and dependent variables, with controlled variables incomplete. | 8-10 ptsDescribes the procedure in prose that omits quantities, times, or instrument settings needed to repeat it, or names only one variable. | 0-7 ptsGives no procedure, or writes only that the class followed the lab sheet. |
| Data, Tables, Graphs, and Units25 points | 23-25 ptsPresents all raw trial data in a titled table with units in the column headings, uses the graph type that fits the data with labeled axes and a scale that fills the grid, and records values to the precision of the instrument used. | 18-22 ptsPresents complete trial data in a table plus a correctly chosen graph, with one element such as a title, a unit, or an axis label missing. | 13-17 ptsPresents data as a running list or an untitled table, chooses a graph type that does not fit the data, or omits units from most values. | 0-12 ptsOmits raw data, reports only a calculated average with no supporting values, or includes no graph where the lab required one. |
| Analysis and Calculations20 points | 18-20 ptsShows the formula, one substituted sample calculation, and the result with correct units for each calculation type, and describes the pattern in the data by citing specific values. | 14-17 ptsShows sample calculations with correct units and states the pattern in the data, with minor arithmetic or rounding errors. | 10-13 ptsReports final numbers with no work shown, or describes the graph as going up or down without citing any values. | 0-9 ptsPerforms none of the required calculations, or reports results off by an order of magnitude with no comment. |
| Conclusion and Sources of Error25 points | 23-25 ptsStates whether the data support the hypothesis and cites the values that decide it, names at least two specific sources of error and what each did to the results, and proposes one concrete change to the procedure. | 18-22 ptsStates whether the hypothesis was supported with reference to the data and names at least one specific source of error. | 13-17 ptsDeclares the hypothesis right or wrong without citing data, or lists error sources such as 'human error' without saying what was mismeasured. | 0-12 ptsRestates the results with no judgment about the hypothesis, or discusses no source of error at all. |
Total: 100 points across 5 criteria.
How to use it
- Rule out 'human error' in writing on the handout and require students to name the measurement and the direction of its effect instead.
- If the class pooled data, score the third criterion on presentation only and shift 5 of its points into Analysis.
- Read the graph with the raw data table open beside it; missing units and wrong graph types are only visible side by side.
- For the first report of the year, collect and score criteria one and two before students draft the rest.
What students most often get wrong
- Writing a hypothesis that predicts an outcome but never names the variable that was deliberately changed.
- Graphing only the averages, so a reader cannot see the spread or spot an outlier trial.
- Claiming the hypothesis was proven rather than supported, and attributing any mismatch to unnamed human error.
Grade with this rubric, without retyping it
Scorae applies a rubric to student work in Google Docs, Canvas, Blackboard and Moodle, and drafts criterion-by-criterion feedback. You review and decide every grade — nothing is submitted for you. Student work is never stored.
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