Final Reflection On Learning

Every hello ends with a goodbye.

This is the 4th and last time I will be writing on this blog. It has been a good 13 weeks going through this module; I have made new friends, learnt new skills and brought home valuable lessons.

I can still vividly remember my very first presentation for this module; the Emotional Intelligence presentation that served as a turning point for me. I usually do not like standing in front of a group and addressing them as a whole, but preparing for that presentation, and successfully executing it greatly boosted my self-confidence. It has definitely given me the courage to speak confidently to a group of people. I also came to the realization that ample preparation is the key to reducing stage fright, and this was indeed a most useful discovery.

For the actual peer teaching phase, the preparation was a breeze for Vanessa and I had known each other prior to the module and our working styles were somewhat similar, and we were quite accommodative of one another’s suggestions. We prepared well in advance and conducted rehearsal sessions to prepare ourselves for the actual presentation. The effort we put in was evident in our peer teaching; we were confident and engaging in terms of the class activity that we had prepared. For the first time in my life, I felt that I might actually be good at teaching and presenting.

The proposal project group was a different story altogether as I was grouped with people I had never worked with before, and I was naturally worried about the group dynamics. The first meeting was rather awkward, with me as the leader having to give instructions to a group of strangers. But my fears was unfounded as my team mates turned out to be amazing ones who never failed to support me.

But the journey was not always smooth-sailing. For example, I recall an occasion when there was a conflict of ideas. We were debating as to the various infrastructural issues that could be incorporated into our proposal, and could not come to a unanimous decision. It then became a tough decision for me because as the leader of the group I most certainly did not want to offend anybody with the decision I made.  For this, I am rather apologetic to my group for perhaps having been less assertive as a leader than I should have.

This has indeed been an exhilarating journey. I believe we can all be proud of what we have done together in these short 13 weeks. ES2007S has been more than just a module, for the first time in a long while, it felt like I was in an actual class, with classmates whose names I can put a face to. I am thankful to have met wonderful people along the way and have made some good friends.

To my classmates, Kok Soon, Jade, Yi Rui, Vanessa, Nguk Neng, Lu Xi, Yi Yan, Haikal, Jie Yang, Terance, Michelle and Basker, all the best for this semester and hope to see you guys around in school!

To Mdm Fazilah, thank you for taking care of us students, and encouraging and prompting us whenever we lacked the confidence to speak out. Thank you for your patience and understanding in guiding us throughout the past 13 weeks. We really appreciate it.

Reflection On Team-based Research Project Proposal

It has been quite awhile since I last worked on a group project and perhaps due in part to that, this team-based research project proposal has indeed been an enriching experience that has imparted useful skills that would no doubt be beneficial in the working environment. Not only have I gained some mastery as to writing a professional report, I have also learnt to communicate with others in a more effective manner and to lead a team in coming up with a project proposal. In addition, this project has imbued me with the sheer importance of getting a message across clearly. From experience, I know that it is quite possible for text messages and emails to be misinterpreted at times, resulting in misunderstandings and reduced efficiency.  To pre-empt these potentially costly mistakes, I decided to hold face-to-face meetings and discussion sessions, and I made it a point to make or ask for clarifications whenever in doubt. Patience was vital, especially since my team mates and I had different working styles, and it was the first time any of us had taken part in such a project. Therefore, at the crux of the great working alliance that we built was the fact that we took the time and effort to understand each other better, allowing us to reconcile our differing working styles.

Being part of a team, in essence, means that every member has a crucial part to play. It was fortunate that my team understood that.  I must say that I was really glad to have been grouped with such hardworking and diligent team mates who not only carried out the tasks allocated to them with great efficiency and to the best of their abilities in spite of their various other commitments and projects, but also took the initiative to do more than their share.

As for carrying out online research for information, it was important to find reliable sources and get information that was relevant and specific to the issue that we aimed to tackle; too much vague and irrelevant information only resulted in unnecessary confusion. I have also learnt that substantiating my hypothesis and results with valid and reliable secondary data is crucial in ensuring its credibility.

In preparation for the oral presentation, I adopted a positive, spontaneous and receptive attitude and listened actively to others’ opinions and suggestions and incorporated the constructive comments and ideas offered. It was such flexibility and openness to feedback that enabled me to take the project to greater heights.

Finally, I would like to thank my group mates, Jade, Yi Rui and Kok Soon for giving me the support I needed as a project leader and for the time and effort they put into the project. Without them, this project definitely would not have amounted to much. I really appreciate their contributions and am honoured to have worked with them.