Critical Reflection

Time flies, it has been 13 weeks in this effective communication module. I could still remember the first day of class when we were introducing ourselves to our classmates and ‘breaking the ice’. I came into class without any expectations of myself and did not know what to expect of this module either. After the first week, we had to write an introduction letter of ourselves to our professor. In that introduction letter, I had listed some goals that I wanted to achieve by the end of the module. I hoped to be able to improve my public speaking skills and be able to present myself confidently in front of people. I also wanted to improve my written communication skills and be able to write a good report that is able to deliver the contents clearly and concisely. I am happy to say that I achieved both my goals. During the final presentation for our project, I felt that I managed to deliver my presentation confidently and professionally. I was able to achieve this goal because I invested time and effort into rehearsing and practicing my presentation many times. Each time I recited my script, I was more confident in presenting it. I am very satisfied with the outcome of my presentation skills. As for my goal on improving written communication skills, I felt that I was able to produce a report that delivers the content clearly and concisely. The instructional units provided was very useful in helping to develop a report. It had great examples and explanations on the specific outcomes of the report which enhances my learning on how to write a good report. With the help of all these resources, I am able to critically think and apply the knowledge I obtained to improve my written communication skills. However, learning is a long process and it never ends. I will take all these communication skills that I have learnt from this module in the past 13 weeks and apply it to whatever I do in the future.

 

During the project learning phase, I would like to focus on the aspect of teamwork skills. Having teamwork is key in doing group projects. It is difficult in doing group projects without having good team dynamics within a team. Through many weeks of working together with my research team, I have learnt many things about myself. I was able to adapt well with the environment and teammates as we had to host meetings on online platforms instead of having them face to face. It was a challenge to get things done as meeting online removes the convenience that face-to-face meetings provide. We had to align with each other’s schedule and find a common time slot to meet up for discussions. Nevertheless, my team and I were able to overcome the issues and adapted well around it. Another thing I learnt was to be receptive to new ideas or suggestions. Everyone wants to have their ideas considered and implemented into the project. But if everyone has their own different ideas, there would be conflict between each other which will hinder the progress of the project. Ultimately, everyone has a common goal in the end which is to complete the project on time. I learnt to accept and consider other ideas from people as their ideas might be better and more suitable for the problem as compared to mine. This goes back to the point on, “Communication is key”. We need to communicate with each other to prevent conflict so that everyone can agree and stand on a common ground. Afterall, having this project is a good experience to have when working with others and I will apply what I learnt here into the things I do in the workforce.