What is the difference between 'Discussion' & 'Conclusion' in a science prac report?

Question

What is the difference between 'Discussion' & 'Conclusion' in a science prac report?

Answer 1

According to the attached Science Practical Report Format, here's what should be in those sections.



Discussion:

What do the results show?

Is there a relationship between the variables? Describe any trends.

Do any of the results appear to be inconsistent? Can you think of a reason why?

Were there any sources of error during the experiment? What effect could they have had?

How could the experiment design be improved to reduce error and/or get better results?

Can you think of a real-life use or example of these results?



Conclusion:

Was your hypothesis confirmed, supported or refuted?

Overall, what did your results show (generalize)?

Answer 2

They are often synonymous. "Discussion" applies to both original research and review papers. "Conclusion" is not used in review papers as often. If the report includes both a Discussion and a Conclusion, the Discussion should contain a brief summary of the experiment(s) and interpretation of the results. The conclusion should then be more of a "why this matters" section or statement of how the hypothesis was proven or disproven.