Final Reflection on Learning

One word to sum up this module – Beneficial. Throughout the course, I have gained many valuable lessons, for example, interview and resume writing skills from peer teaching and also, the research project proposal. Therefore, this is definitely a module to take if you’re considering graduating soon, or anytime. This course is mainly interacting with people through verbal and non-verbal cues, presenting yourself well and conveying messages with 7Cs.  

Peer teaching has given me an opportunity to conduct the lesson with the objectives in mind. It has also allowed me to know where my strengths and weaknesses stand so that I can improve for my oral presentation. As one of my group mates is from India, this gave me an intercultural experience by sharing our cultural knowledge with each other. One of the challenges I faced initially was my pace of speech. I tend to speak very fast when I am nervous so I had to control myself whenever I sense that I am speaking too fast.

Another interesting component of this module is the mock interview. This gave us an opportunity to have a feel of how the real situation will be in the near future. It was really an engaging session having to play the role of an observer, interviewer and interviewee. It is also important to prepare and know how to tackle difficult questions during an interview. This shows that you are keen on the job and is able to think quickly on your feet.

Another major component to this module, which we spent the most amount of time on it, is the research project proposal. Despite the long hours working on this written and oral proposal, it gave us an insight of what are the important factors that can affect a persuasive report and presentation. I have also learnt how to manage my time properly to set time aside to for the proposal. Through giving an oral presentation, I learnt that applying the right tone and techniques can actually convince your audience that the proposal you are working on are viable solutions for the betterment of future. An improvement made from my last presentation (peer teaching) was my eye contact with the audience. Eye contact is important because it serves as an interaction with you and your audience.

Most of my classmates come from different background and it was really interesting to know about their course of studies. Working with people from different background in a group work has taught me to work interactively and plan my time wisely. I would like to thank Mdm Fazilah for her constant encouragement and guidance throughout the course of study. Also, sharing knowledge and working together with one another has definitely been an enjoyable and pleasant learning experience. Before I end this blog post, here’s a class photo of us! Hope to see all of you around in school and all the best for your future endeavours! 

Reflection on Team-based Research Project Proposal

It was a pleasant learning experience working on a research project proposal; gathering information and understanding the current problems that Singapore may have. At the start of this project, each of us had a different topic in mind and after much discussion, we decided to focus on recycling issue which has been an ongoing environmental problem that Singapore faces over the years. Having effective communication is one of a takeaway for me from this project. This is essential in a teamwork as the lack of communication can easily affect the quality of work and leadng to possible conflicts. All of us had different time schedule and hence we had to manage our time properly. We needed the time to conduct formal meeting to make sure that the progress were updated before we could proceed further. With the availability of technology such as Whatapp and Google Docs, we were able to constantly keep one another updated which made our meeting a fast and efficient one.

Throughout the entire process for this written proposal, from reviewing the background information, brainstorming the ideas, analysing the problems, gathering primary and secondary research, sourcing for solutions and finally to writing a proposal, it was a rather enriching process because it had given me a “hands-on” experience of what the essential components are in a proposal by applying what we learnt from the various peer teaching groups. At the start of this project, we actually had some problems deciding on our target of focus from a wide range of issues in recycling. However, things started to work out after we sat down to brainstorm and think about the possible solutions we could have. On the other hand, it could have been better if we started brainstorming the ideas earlier so that we would not be pressing for time at the later part. On top of that, we also delegate the role for each team member so as to ease the amount of workload. All of us were responsible by completing the assigned task before the dateline which did not hinder the overall progress. Hence, besides good communication, teamwork and responsibility – second and third takeaways, are important factor to have in a team.

Oral presentation is also another takeaway for me. This is a different kind of presentation unlike peer teaching which we simply deliver information. Here, a persuasive tone is important to convince your audience. One of the requirements in a persuasive presentation is credibility. This is important to convince your audience why the topic chosen is a needed attention for improvement. Teamwork also applies here- Questions and Answers session. We gave each other a chance to answer the questions asked so that there would not be any clashes which would reflect badly on us.

Working in a team is common in a workplace, especially having to present the proposal both written and orally. With the above takeaways mentioned, they are essential factors needed in a team to ensure a smooth flow of work. Imagine if there is communication breakdown or internal conflicts, it would probably cause a hindrance in the progress and lack of quality of work. This would only reflect badly on you, and your team, which is not desirable.

Evaluating Intercultural Behaviour

With a rise in globalisation and multicultural work environment, intercultural communications become important. Sometimes people may be unaware of the opposite party's cultures and may show some hand sign or words that has different meanings in different countries. For example, a peace hand sign may mean a number two or an insult. Therefore, there is a need for us to understand the different cultures of people so as to avoid misunderstanding and to foster effective communication. 

This reminds me of a holiday in Hong Kong. Although Singapore and Hong Kong do not vary much in terms of their cultures and the population, there are still some which differ to a certain extent. In Hong Kong, we would be served with a pot of bland tea specially for washing of cutlery in restaurants. My uncle, who lives in Hong Kong, told me that the customers might not be satisfied with the hygienic conditions thus they will wash them before using. Also, they would place a small bowl on top of a plate. Since I was used to eating with a plate, I would always remove the bowl and place the food on my plate. I felt strange when I saw some of the customers who were sharing table with us kept looking at me. So I asked my uncle and he explained to me that the bowl was mainly for food while the plate was mainly for bones and others (no wonder for a few times my uncle kept placing the bowl back on my plate). 

Cantonese is commonly spoken in Hong Kong and it may serve as a language barrier if one does not understand. As my family speaks Xin Hui Cantonese, a different dialect different from Hong Kong Cantonese, I had some difficulty communicating with my relatives as some of the pronunciation is different. For example, vegetable in Xin Hui Cantonese is spoken as "cui", but my uncle could not understand even after I repeated a few times. Then I realised that it was pronounced as "choy" in Hong Kong Cantonese after my father told me.

Through this holiday in Hong Kong, I realise that it is important to be aware and increase our sensitivity to the different cultural behaviour when we are in another country. This can help to improve our intercultural competence. On the other hands, if we do not understand or are unaware of the foreigners' cultures, we should also be sincere so that they will know that we actually respect them and their cultures. 

Resolving Interpersonal Conflicts

Interpersonal conflict occurs with practically everyone who interacts with on a sustained basis. They can be your family, friends or even among your colleagues. In this new paradigm, interpersonal conflict is natural and inevitable. Although conflicts can take a negative emotional toll such as the guilt or anger we may feel after blowing up at someone, it provides an opportunity for personal growth, if conflicts are handled well with sensitivity and assertiveness.

Taking the described scenario, a group of four students (Tim, John, Viona and Tricia) were working on their presentation for their project which they had spent a few months on it. The presentation was due two weeks following their end of experiment on the project.  Tim was the leader of the group and thus the rest of them expected him to hold the most responsibility for the quality of work. Tim and Tricia received a task which was quite time-consuming and tough. It included some research and tabulating of results etc while John and Viona were just setting and collecting of survey forms from participants. Prior to each meeting, they would specify the task to be completed. However, Tim, being the leader, was always late for at least half an hour. This slowly created some unhappiness among the rest of the teammates because his unpunctuality caused the delay in meeting. Tim explained that he had been working part-time for the past few days that he barely had time to work on his part and he apologised for that.

Everyone had completed what they had been assigned to but it was only left with Tim’s part before they could make a conclusion to their project. They were pressing for time as the presentation was just a few days later. The three of them, instead of helping him out, chided him for not contributing enough on time. Tim tried to defend himself by explaining that he had to work and they were expecting too much from him as a leader. Eventually, this argument resulted in some resentment among the other teammates and him.  

The above situation could be avoided if Tim had voiced out earlier that he had to work and discuss with Tricia on the workload between the two of them. John and Viona could offer help as well so that the task can be completed on time. On top of that, they should not put too much expectation on Tim for the quality of the project because individuals have a part to play in the type of work they produce. This might lessen the stress that is placed on Tim which may allow him to be more efficient on his work assigned. They should also pay attention to each other's verbal and non-verbal signals like signs of frustration or even level of stress to avoid arguments. 

If you’re in the position of Tim, what will you do so that the task assignment to everyone can be completed on time and done fairly?