The scientific method is a framework for solving problems, investigating the world around us, or describing phenomena.
Everyone uses it to solve day-to-day problems, but scientists use it to prove or disprove hypotheses in order to further our understanding of the natural world.
A hypothesis is a well-considered suggestion as to the outcome of an experiment. It is always based on prior knowledge about a system. A null hypothesis is one that is thought to be the opposite of true, so it can then be falsified (shown to be false).
Controlled or independent variables are under the researcher’s control and should be held constant between all experimental groups. Dependent or response variables are a way of measuring the outcome of modifying the independent variables.
Qualitative data is essentially a list of observations made to describe a system or phenomenon, whereas quantitative data involves the collection of numerical data which can be statistically analyzed.
