Det kommer in någon form av magkänsla, och det låter ju inte riktigt klokt

Sammanfattning: Several studies have discussed the importance of laboratory work in physics education and the many different areas of learning that this can contribute to. Most of these studies mention the laboratory report to be an essential part of these laboratory exercises. However, close to none of these studies describe how to teach, advise, review, or assess a written laboratory report. Moreover, the governing documents of the Swedish high school courses ranging from biology to physics never mention a written laboratory report as a requirement throughout any of the scientific courses. The purpose of this study is to identify the most important factors that determine the teachers' choices regarding the education and assessment of their students' written laboratory reports. How much the governing documents from Skolverket affect the teachers in their choices, and furthermore, discuss the differences and similarities between high school teachers' and university teachers' view on laboratory reports. To answer these questions, we have conducted interviews with several different teachers from different schools and levels of education. With these interviews and a thematic- and hermeneutic analysis we have found data that indicate how teachers view the importance of a written laboratory report and how they choose to work with it. The results of this study indicate that it is not only different didactic theories that dictate the teacher´s preferred method of teaching laboratory reports but also the degree of freedom provided by official documents and the available time as two of the most significant factors influencing the teacher’s choice of teaching methods. Moreover, we have identified the need for further research concerning the equivalence in how teachers assess laboratory reports.