Phase one, complete
When I enrolled in this module, my main aim was to refine my writing skills, which I felt were not as good as they could be. I wanted to practice writing more concisely. Now, at the end of this module, I look back and see that I have learnt so much more.
Learning how to write resumes and application letters, how to design and conduct simple lessons, how to write a proposal and then present on it, all these skills I learnt will serve me well throughout my life. My goal of simply learning how to write concisely was achieved during the proposal writing when we had to refine the proposal to make it less wordy and more persuasive. I also had the opportunity to improve on my speaking and presentation skills, which are transferable skills that will be useful to me no matter what field I choose to venture into.
What I really liked about this module is the very interactive nature of the lessons. Like many of my classmates have highlighted, many of our modules from our majors are conducted in massive lecture classes. As such there is much less interaction among students and faculty. The small class size of this module has allowed for much more interaction, which has made the learning more hands on, as well as the module as a whole more enjoyable. I have learnt much more than what I set out to when I enrolled in this module.
After reading this module, I hope to be able to make good use of the skills I have picked up, as well as improve on them as I go through life. I feel that we should never stop learning. Knowledge is its own reward.
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Oral Presentation
I feel that my presentation was average overall. There were points that I thought were good and points that I felt could be improved.
One of the things I felt was well done was the focus of the presentation as a whole was quite good. The slides had a coherent flow, taking the audience from the problem to the proposed solution, while supporting our statements all the while. Points were well explained and substantiated. The slide content meshed well with what the presenters were speaking about.
I felt that the use of humour was a plus point for our group. Judging my the smiles and small amount of laughter, I would say that the humour helped to break up the monotony of an otherwise dry presentation.
The group also handled the question and answer session well, with group members being familiar with the content and answering questions clearly. Group members also did not have to add on to what others said as each group member gave a clear and complete answer.
I feel that the preparation could have been done better. Our group members all had other academic commitments for that week that made it difficult to commit a lot of time to rehearsals. As such the delivery was not as smooth as it could have been, with presenters occasionally stumbling.
Overall, I think the presentation was quite well done, but more rehearsals would have made the delivery smoother.
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Huh? What?
In December 2007, I went to Taiwan with some of my classmates from Junior College. Given my abysmal command of Mandarin, I understood almost nothing anyone said over there, except when my friends gave a running commentary in English.
One evening we were eating at a Chinese restaurant for dinner, in order to have a change from the hawker food which we had been eating for the past few days (the street food was great, but we just felt like trying something different). For some inexplicable reason (there have been mixed views on whether I even look Chinese), the waitress handed me the menu and started saying something in Mandarin. My unsurpassed levels of language proficiency only allowed me to pick up the two syllables “yu ci”. After smiling politely at the waitress and nodding at seemingly appropriate moments, my friend jumped in and said something else indecipherable to the waitress, whereupon she said something polite sounding and left.
After the waitress left, I whispered to my friend:”What’s fish poke?” My question was greeted by a hilariously confused look.
“Fish poke? She mentioned yu ci? Am I translating it wrongly?” I elaborated. My friend simply burst into laughter.
“Yu ci is shark’s fin Gerard! How can you not know what shark’s fin is in chinese?!”
While I am officially Chinese according to various documents, and have actually taken Mandarin as a second language all the way up till Junior College, my proficiency in the language is barely enough to allow me to order food in Singlish (at a food court, not a proper Chinese restaurant mind you). I simply point, smile, nod and say thank you before paying/leaving. My understanding of Chinese culture is more or less equally non-existent. Said understanding has also led to other hilarious episodes on various occasions.
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Application Letter
Gerard Chan
33 East Road #12-34
Singapore 654321
1 Feb 2010
Dr Alan Ang
Research fellow
Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory
1 Research Link, NUS
Singapore, 123456
Dear Dr Ang,
I am writing to apply for the position of intern in your lab for the period of 10 May 2010 to 30 July 2010. After writing to Dr Cecil Chen to enquire about the position of intern, I was advised to approach you regarding the position. As a second year Life Science major in NUS, I feel that your research on protein folding is extremely interesting and relevant to my studies. My coursework with NUS has provided me with experience in lab work in biochemistry as well as molecular and cell biology that I feel would be helpful to your research.
My extra-curricular experience has equipped me with important and relevant skills such as organisation skills, independence and teamwork. Being in charge of an armory in the Singapore Armed Forces, I utilised my organisational skills in revamping the systems in place for recording item movement as well as physical arrangements of the items themselves. Through my experience in Scouting, I have displayed teamwork in co-organising a camp for cub scouts, as well as independence in planning and executing an activity for Scouts from Singapore and Malaysia on my own.
In my two years at NUS, I have achieved a CAP of 4.3. I am proficient in procedures such as agarose gel electrophoresis and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. An internship with Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory will prove to be mutually beneficial. Your company has an excellent reputation for quality research and my education as well as motivation will make me a great asset for your lab. This internship would also provide me with an opportunity to improve my understanding and proficiency of more advanced research skills and experimental techniques.
My resume is enclosed for your reference. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Do not hesitate to contact me at 98765432 (mobile) or via email at u0800100@nus.edu.sg.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Gerard Chan
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By does! You broge by does!
Whenever I think of conflict, I think of soldiers. And what better example of interpersonal conflict could there be than the often spectacular clashes between our very own guys in green. When I say clashes, I don’t mean training exercises between different units, I mean altercations among the fine lads that are supposed to have each other’s back when the lead starts flying.
Looking back, I suppose that it was inevitable that things boiled over as they did. Forcing individuals from various walks of life to live together for prolonged periods of time for a purpose that no one seems to actually believe in is obviously going to result in some fur flying. The stakes only get higher when these individuals are allowed access to weaponry.
One particularly spectacular incident occurred during the darkest two years of my usually sunny life. For those of you may have read my comments on Andrew’s first post, this may come as nothing new to you. Two individuals, both with rather lacking communication skills, forced to work together for prolonged period of time can never result in anything good.
Sergeant A is a responsible and well intentioned individual who lacks the finesse to phrase his words in a diplomatic fashion. As such, he comes across as rather rude and aggressive (which he actually is not). His inability to handle stress well also results in him taking his hostile appearance to a whole new level. Rifleman B is a headstrong individual under Sergeant A’s charge. He has authority issues as well as little to no ability to be diplomatic.
The memorable incident took place in the parade square after our morning parade. Sergeant A asks his men to continue with clearing the surrounding area of leaves while Rifleman B wishes to have a smoke break. Diplomacy was nowhere evident in this exchange (unless you subscribe to Bush’s idea diplomacy).
Sergeant A: You! Go sweep the drain behind the building!
Rifleman B: I want to go smoke now.
Sergeant A: No! Go sweep now!
Rifleman B’s succinct reply is a well thrown right hook ending in Sergeant A’s nose.
Both individuals had goals that were not mutually exclusive. Neither of them actually had to give up their own objective. Good communication skills could have prevented this incident from degenerating into an assault charge with a one month military jail term and a one month medical leave term with surgical reconstruction.
Sergeant A was simply following instructions passed down from his own superiors. He probably felt trapped between having to obey his superiors while seeing to the needs of his subordinates. Knowing that Rifleman B was a headstrong individual he probably felt it necessary to be more aggressive and intimidating to get his point across to Rifleman B.
Rifleman B did not believe in the tasks set out for him. He probably felt that they were a complete waste of time that would not benefit anyone at all. As such he felt that such tasks could be left aside until his own needs (the smoke break) were satisfied.
I feel that aside from a total lack of diplomacy among individuals, there is a lack of trust as well. Both parties did not trust that the other would help them achieve their own objectives and so they felt they had to disregard the other person’s goal in order to achieve their own. What do you all think is the main issue here and how can future instances of such conflicts (which may or may not occur with both parties holding live weapons) be avoided?
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And so it begins
When considering what modules to take this semester, I decided to add ES2007S to the list. Looking at the list of topics and the rather overwhelming list of documents already in the IVLE workbin, I can see that I have made a good choice. The module content covers areas ranging from internet communication to body language as well as the more conventional written and oral communication. All of these areas will be important to me in both my professional and personal life in future.
Effective communications skills are important to me as they are necessary for me to get my point across quickly and without ambiguity. I intend to work in the field of cell biology research. As such, our findings (or lack thereof) will need to be published in scientific papers. Given that a research project spanning about 10 months can be covered in anything from two to twenty pages depending on how focused the writing is done, I feel that the art of writing clearly and concisely is a crucial skill I need to master.
One glaring flaw I am aware of in my current writing style is that I tend towards verbosity. When writing term papers, I have often caught myself using excessively long sentences to convey my points when much shorter ones could have gotten my point across with equal clarity. I hope that the skills I learn in this module will allow me to more consciously be aware of my writing style as well as how and when to use it effectively.
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Gerard's ES Blog 