How am I doing?
Learning Aim D: Review personal development of scientific skills for laboratory work
Introduction
In this report I will be reviewing and evaluating the skills I learnt in all the practicals I did so
far. I will also be going over the mistakes I made, and I will be explaining how I feel I
performed in all the practicals.
Skills
Skills I knew
Skills I learnt whilst doing
before these Skills I need to develop on
the practicals
practicals
- I knew how to - Being able to measure
measure liquids solutions from the meniscus - I need to develop my attention to
correctly in ml detail skills because in my
- I learnt how to calibrate a calorimetry practical I did not control
- I knew how to burette the room temperature and that
measure the mass effected my results
of powders - I learn how to calibrate a
correctly to the pipette - I need to develop my time
correct decimal management skills because I rush
place and in - I learnt how to calibrate a pH some parts during a practical and that
grams probe effects my results
- I knew how to - I need to develop my safety skills
correctly - I learnt how to calibrate a because in titration I spilt
measure colorimeter hydrochloric acid which is hazardous
distances using a
ruler - I learnt how to calibrate a - I need to develop my accuracy
burette because in titration and Colorimetry I
- I knew how to was not able to measure solutions
measure the - I learn how to calibrate a accurately
temperature of pipette
solutions using a
liquid - I learnt how to create a
thermometer colorimetry graph with the
absorbance on the Y – axis and
- I knew why we the concentration on the X –
use personal axis
protective
equipment (PPE) - I learnt how to calibrate a
during practicals liquid thermometer
and its safety
- I learnt how to calibrate a
- I was always digital thermometer
, - I learnt how to create a
cooling curve of Stearic acid
aware of my and Paraffin wax
surroundings - Learnt how to carry out TLC
practical
- I knew basic
paper - Learnt how to carry out paper
chromatography chromatography of amino
acids practical
How am I doing?
In this unit, I completed the following practicals: Titration, Colorimetry, Calorimetry and
Chromatography. I have learnt many skills by completing these practicals as seen in the table
above. These skills will help me in future practicals and improve the accuracy of the overall
practical.
Some general skills I obtained were: Attention to detail - because to get accurate results I
should carefully control the practical conditions, such as the room temperature, the time, the
equipment, the variables, safety and more. This skill requires a high level of accuracy and
attention to detail.
Another important general skill I learnt is problem-solving - Whilst doing practicals I often
come across problems or results that required effective solutions. By applying critical
thinking and analytical skills, I was able to overcome these challenges successfully.
These practicals also developed my data analysis skills – because by collecting and analysing
data I had obtained from these practicals I was able to plot graphs, make tables and come to
conclusions for each of my practicals.
These practicals also developed my communication skills – this is needed as I was working in
a pair, so having good communication skills allowed me to be able to work effectively with
my peers, like sharing ideas, helping each other and allocating tasks for each of us to do.
Titration and Colorimetry Practical: Strengths and Weaknesses
Whilst doing the Titration practical, some skills I used were: Communication, data analysis,
attention to detail (accuracy), observation, mathematical skills, and more.
Some skills which I was strong in is: Communication skills – this is because me and my
partner were always interacting and allocating tasks for us both to do. For example, for rough
titration my peer was using the pipette to contain the standard solution, and I was filling the
burette till 0cm3 with hydrochloric acid. Then for fine titration, I was using the pipette to
contain the standard solution whilst my peer was filling the burette with hydrochloric acid till
0cm3.
Another skill which I used confidently was my mathematical skills – this is because I am
good at maths, and by using the data I had recovered from my graphs and my tables I was
, able to calculate the concentrations of sodium carbonate, copper sulfate and hydrochloric acid
easily and accurately.
Another skill which I developed during this practical is observation skills – this is because in
rough titration I was able to identify when the standard solution turned pink, and for fine
titration I was able to identify when the pH would change and was able to record it in my
table.
A skill which I need to develop is my attention to detail, more specifically my accuracy – this
is because whilst measuring the hydrochloric acid into the burette the meniscus is supposed to
be exactly touching the 0 line. However, the meniscus that I measured was under the 0 line
this could have affected my results as the answer that I got could have been lower than what
it is now (it could have been 8cm3 of hydrochloric poured in for the colour to change). Also,
whilst using the pipette I needed the sodium carbonate standard solution meniscus to be at
25cm3 exactly so that my method and results are more accurate. However, again when I had
done this the meniscus was below the 25cm3 line. Another example is that whilst I was doing
my serial dilution when I was mixing distilled water and copper sulfate solution in the
boiling/testing tubes, By using the equipment in the room I decided to measure how much
solution I was putting in by using a 10cm3 measuring cylinder, however by using this I was
still unable to measure it accurately, as the solutions were either more than or less than the
desired measurement – so when I was doing a measurement of copper sulfate at 8.0cm3 the
meniscus was under 8.0cm3 so it was at 7.6cm3, this could have affected my results. A better
equipment to use to measure small amounts of solutions is a pipette the standard small ones,
this will help as you can release smaller amount of solutions by using a pipette this will also
improve accuracy.
Another skill which I will need to improve is safety – this is because whilst I was pouring the
hydrochloric acid in the burette, many hydrochloric acid got spilt onto the floor as I had my
burette on the floor. This led to the floor getting wet and someone could have slipped and
gotten badly hurt, so I had to quickly wipe the floor with tissues. However, next time I do this
practical I will use a funnel so that the hydrochloric acid can enter the burette without any
hydrochloric acid getting spilt. And another way to improve this skill is to search up the
practical and understand what safety precautions I should take whilst doing the practical so
that this way I will know what could occur whilst doing the practical beforehand, and that
when something does occur then I will know what to do.
Another skill which I will need to improve is time management - this is because as I have a
specified time to be doing my practical, I should have an assigned time on when to do what
step and for how long. However, I had not done this, and this resulted in me rushing some
parts of my practical, for example I was short on time during when I was on rough titration
the colour changing, so I was turning the stopcock and waiting for the colour of the standard
solution to change, and because I was so short on time I allowed the hydrochloric acid in the
burette to be released quickly so that the colour can change quickly. However, because of this
my results could have been inaccurate as I was releasing the hydrochloric too fast into the
standard solution which resulted in me not being able to see at what number (amount of
hydrochloric used) the standard solution changed colour. So, the next time I do a practical I
will have to plan how long I should take approximately with a step so that I finish the
practical on time.
