Reflection for ES2002

It has been a few weeks since my last blog post and now that my report, FOP and FIPD were over, I guess it is a great time to reflect upon what I have gained and learned throughout this entire course.

My first test was the GT and to think about it, GT was really a turning point for me. Without the GT, I wouldn't have realised the mistakes that I would never have been conscious about. Since the GT, I would always make it a point to reflect back and remind myself that I need to be softer, slower and, not to forget, that content is the gist of the whole presentation.

The next test that I had was the report writing component. Drawing out lessons from the GT, I told myself that content is the king of a report and I must work doubly hard on understanding the issue. I did a lot of research in order to draw out the appropriate links. Of course, considerable amount of time was also put in to make the report comprehensible (and of course, to meet the word limit). FOP came not long afterwards. To be honest, I was really anxious with the FOP because I really want to do well for the presentation. The situation was compounded further when I realised that I had really poor eye-contact during the trial practice. On top of the 3 problems that I had in GT, I had to improve my eye connection with the audiences and it took me, admittedly, quite a long while before I could “re-wire” my eyes to make such connection. I was really relieved my hard works in producing and delivering good content was eventually paid off by edging ahead of my friends (and I must admit that they did really well too!). In term of delivery, I was really happy that my eye contact had improved drastically and my pacing and volume was also improving. On the consultation day, Brad and I had a heart-to-heart talk and I realised that to be a better presenter, I would have to establish more authentic eye contact. Using cartoon in presentation had also provoked controversy (maybe the word “controversy” is a bit serious but I really take their opinions seriously) and I told Brad again how I could work round this problem. Brad enlightened me that I could use real photographs and probably I could start establishing a photo-bank, which I thought is a great idea especially when I am still so young. J

I went home that day and I sat down deep in thoughts, pondering on the things that I could improve on as well as how I could make “authentic” eye contact that Brad was referring to. I am not sure if I had gotten what Brad had meant about the "authentic" eye contact but during the FIPD, I attempted to create more lasting eye contacts with my audiences by looking at them more deeply and passionately during the FIPD. I also put in considerable efforts in improving my pacing as well as the volume. Of course, not to forget, the content was only done after considerable understanding of the issue. Photographs (instead of cartoons) were also used in the slides. However, FIPD came at a "tough" time, especially when I had 4 presentations in that week alone and the week before the FIPD, I just had my FOP and marketing presentations. I am not sure if I am coping and doing it well but I did put in my very best.

And today, I had my last lesson with Brad. I am really happy to hear that Brad was proud to see my improvements from the GT to the Report to the FOP and finally the FIPD. I wanted to say to you in class (but I am pretty shy because I am introvert who prefers to pen down my feelings) that I am really proud to be your student and to have you as my tutor. Thank you, Brad (as well as the very warming ice miloJ). Really hope Brad could get to see this message.

Here a summary of what I have learned and of course, these would serve as important reminders for for all my future presentations. Thank you ES2002.

Learning Points from GT

-         Pacing should be slower
-         Volume/voice should be softer
-         More efforts are needed to improve the content

Learning Points from Report

-         Choice of words can be more positive (e.g. Don’t use words like “complaints”. Instead, use words like “concerns”.)

Learning Points from FOP

-         Establish “authentic” eye contacts
-         Using real photographs and establish a photo-bank

Thoughts on GT Training

The GT training that I had was really fun. I also had a team of supportive team members, like Li Qi, Liquan and Clarissa, who never fail to give me valuable feedbacks to so that I can do well on the actual presentation.

Although my actual presentation was average, I was still a bit disappointed with the marks that I got. One major component that had pulled my score down was the content. In fact, I thought this was supposed to be a group marks. Nevertheless, I would work on all the areas that was highlighted to me in the upcoming FOP presentation.

Here are some of the key areas highlighted by the class on my presentation:

Strength
- Enthusiasm

Weakness
- Pacing can be a bit slower
- Should have taken more care in understanding the context and the environment (In this case,informality is a no-go and the volume could have been a bit softer given that the presentation was in a small room)

Once again, I would like to thank my team for making this GT project a wonderful and enjoyable experience! Thank you :)

Framework of the report

Hi

I did a general framework for my report and this is how it goes...

Framework of the report

·         PPQ

Problem:

-          Employers complaining that NUS graduates do not write well.

Purpose:

-          To convince NUS to take up suggested programmes that aim to improve their written communication before they enter into the workforce

Questions:

-          What types of reports are students often required to produce in the workplace?

-          Which aspects of written communication are students particularly weak at?

-          What are the weaknesses in the current writing classes offered in NUS?

o   How are the courses / modules (in general), which are currently in place, able to facilitate the development of writing skills?

o   What is the level of feedback that NUS students are receiving at the moment?

-          How are the suggested programmes able to improve students’ written communication?

 

·         Layout of the report

-          Introduction

o   Brief overview of the situation

o   PPQ, Scope, Limitations, Sources and Methods

-          Findings

o   Interpretation of the data found

-          Conclusions

o   Explanations for the findings

-          Recommendations

o   Introducing the various suggested programmes that we have created

-          Overall Conclusion

 

Interpersonal Conflict

It was the first day of 2013 and just like any other New Year; I would go to the barber and get a haircut because receiving a haircut symbolises a brand new start. As expected, the small barber shop that I frequent was packed to the hilt.

While waiting for my turn, I heard a commotion behind me. I didn’t want to be a nosy parker but the noise was so loud that I could overhear exactly what they were saying. It was a disagreement between a mother and a daughter and apparently, the daughter had gotten a few shapes tattooed on her right shoulders and was also caught smoking. Clearly, you could see that her mother was mad. Her mother was chastising her openly in the public. She also demanded her daughter to remove those tattoos at once. The nasty lecture, which obviously fell on deaf ears, got her daughter so riled up and in no time at all, it had escalated into an exchange of vulgarities and finger-pointing.

I could see that the initial intention of her mother was meant to be good but her approach (hmmm…) really need to be overhauled.

Food for thought

If you were her mother, what would you do so that you could impose your idea (like you should stop smoking) and at the same time, respect your child’s rights and freedoms?