CARLINGFORD HIGH SCHOOL

SCIENCE FACULTY POLICY (13.8.08)

ACCURACY, RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY

It is the policy of the science department at Carlingford High School that students become familiar with
the meanings of the following terms as they progress from guided through to independent investigations
in Years 7 to 10.
In years 11 and 12 it is expected that students know and apply these terms to all first-hand investigations.

ACCURACY (exactness)
Most measurements contain some uncertainty. Accuracy refers to the exactness of a measurement.
We can measure a small distance with a metre rule or with much greater accuracy using a micrometer.

RELIABILITY (dependability)
Reliability refers to the consistency with which we can confirm a result. Consistency is usually achieved
by repetition.

VALIDITY (fairness)
A procedure is valid if it tests what it is supposed to be testing. A procedure is invalid if the method of the
experiment is incorrect or partially incorrect.
In a valid experiment all variables are kept constant apart from those being investigated, all systematic
errors have been eliminated and random errors have been reduced by taking multiple measurements.
In determining validity, students should consider the degree to which evidence supports the assertion or
claim being evaluated. This may be done by making comparisons or conducting further experiments.

ERRORS
The two different types of error that can occur in a measurement are:
1. Systematic error - this occurs to the same extent in each measurement, e.g. when the needle of a
voltmeter is not correctly adjusted to zero when no voltage is present.
2. Random error - this occurs in any measurement as a result of the variations in measurement
technique, e.g. parallax error, limit of reading.

COMMENTS
The relationship between reliability and validity can be confusing because measurements can be reliable
without being valid. However, they cannot be valid unless they are reliable.
It is easier to be confident of your conclusion when there are limited variables involved and ones that can
be relatively easy to control. That is why it was very difficult to establish the link between smoking and
lung cancer. How long, if ever, will it take to establish whether using digital mobile phones causes brain
cancer? The more complex the situation in terms of variables to control, the less certain we can be that
one test will deliver the answer.
Investigations become invalid or unreliable when:
The sample is not representative.
The reliability of the instrument changes e.g. due to fatigue.
Outside events occur during the course of the experiment.
The experience of taking a test has an influence on the tests results.
The expectations of an outcome cause the experimenter to view data in a different way.
Data gathered is influenced by expectation (The Placebo Effect).

SUMMARY
first-hand information and data

secondary information and data

Accuracy Instruments should be precise and calibrated. Sources should be reputable?

reliability

All tests should be repeated a significant

number of times.

Information obtained should be

consistent with information from other
reputable sources.

validity

Experiments should test the hypothesis that is

proposed.
The experimental method must be correct?
All variables should be identified and
controlled.

Information should be gathered in an

unbiased and professional manner.
Findings must relate to the hypothesis or
problem.

EXAMPLE OF THE APPLICATION OF ACCURACY, RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY

Experiment: A student designs an investigation to see if an acid reacting with a metal is an exothermic
reaction. The student tests various acids with various metals using a normal thermometer but does not
register a temperature change. The student concludes that these reactions are not exothermic. Is the
student wrong?
Accuracy. The student is not wrong based on the results obtained but the results are not accurate because
the measuring device used is not sensitive (accurate) enough.
The experiment is repeated using a temperature probe and data logger. The probe can detect temperature
changes as small as 0.2C. After about ten seconds the temperature change peaks at 0.4C. The student
concludes that the reaction is exothermic. However, are her results reliable?
Reliability. The student repeats the experiment three times, obtains the same result each time and
announces that the reaction is, as she predicted, exothermic. Several other students are then invited to do
the experiment using different probes and data loggers. They also confirm the pattern of a 0.4C
temperature rise.
The student can now have confidence in her conclusion because, by repetition, she has established a
consistent pattern of results for the same experiment. However, is the above procedure a valid test for the
claim that the reaction between a metal and an acid is exothermic?
Validity. The validity of this experiment depends on the certainty we have that the source of heat causing
the temperature change is the result of the reaction between the metal and the acid and not from some
other process. A correct method would eliminate these other variables as possible influences.
To be sure, you would have to rule out the possibility that the acid was reacting with something else, e.g.
a protective coating on the nail. One procedure to sort that out might be to polish the nail with steel wool
before putting it in the acid. Another possibility might be a contaminant. This variable could be controlled
by polishing the nail and making sure the source of the acid is pure.

reliable, but not valid

not reliable, not valid

reliable and valid