Final reflections

ES2007S has been an unforgettable experience. I still remember thinking that the workload seemed really heavy when Jivs first suggested we take this module. But as they say nothing worthwhile comes easy, "no pain, no gain" and this module is a classic example. I have truly developed as an individual, become more aware and tolerant as well as overcome many of my fears in terms of communication and emerged victorious.

Experiences such as the peer teaching and to a larger scale the team project taught me to collaborate and work with people. I had to care for my team members, accomodate their schedules and even negotiate with them at times. So many people skills were honed in this process. Importantly, I learnt to put myself in the shoes of another person before acting and I learnt to treat someone the way I would want them to treat me. As for the oral presentation aspect, I am proud that I managed to overcome the fear of speaking in front of people and have even succeeded in enjoying presenting. The content in this module has also provoked me to constantly try to be an active listener, better speaker and presenter and all in all an effective communicator.

The assignments have also taught me how to structure my information effectively and most importantly how to promote myself, an essential life skill when entering the workforce I must say. I am now able to analyse my audience and not only tailormake emails or letters suiting each of them, I am also able to change the way I would present my ideas verbally to each of them.

What I benefitted most from was the constant participation that was required of us during class and the constructive criticism we had to constantly give as well as receive. This was the part I found the most difficult. It is always easiest to keep your comments to yourself and not bring it up to someone if you think what you are going to say is not something the other party wants to hear. But through the blogging exercise in this module, I have realised that having to give honest comments on someone's post has helped me think critically and receiving feedback from peers has also helped me improve myself a lot.

And yes this is not the end. I see it as the beginning of effective communication in my years to come. Finally I would like to thank everyone in class as well as Brad for having made this learning experience a joyous and wonderful one.

The Art of Communication

This may have been true for some or even most of us when we entered this course. Well it certainly was for me. Active listening was something of the past. This should be pretty understandable for anyone who has been to the numerous lectures in NUS. At some point everyone will tune off, it is just a matter of when. But this module was different. I have to confess that if I were to look back at my university education, I will definitely say that ' Hey that module really drove the importance of communication into my brain'.

I may not be a perfect communicator or even a near perfect one at the end of this course but I am much more aware as an individual of the various aspects of communication some of which I had been practising but never realised, some of which I never gave much thought to.

In retrospect, there are two main aspects that I have pondered on the most. This quote by Winston Churchill says it all. "Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is also what is takes to sit down and listen". Be it intentionally or unintentionally I feel we have been made to step out of our comfort zones and communicate as well as sit back and ponder on what our coursemates have said throughout this course.

I sincerely hope to continue making an effort to communicate effectively and let me end off by saying that the long list of resolutions will continue in my next blog post.

OP reflections

First and foremost I would like to thank all my team members. I know how stressed all of you were with all the numerous other commitments you had. But I am glad we managed to pull through together as a team. The support and honest comments we gave each other when practising the day before the presentation really united us and the commitment each of you displayed impressed me. Thanks again guys.

I think Germaine has comprehensively summarised how each of us presented but the main thing that struck me was how much improvement we have made since the peer teaching.

Personally, I was a bit jittery because this is the first professional style presentation I have made and I had to keep reminding myself not to try to engage the audience in a colloquial manner. I think I suceeded pretty well. I also surprised myself by maintaining good eye contact. It was kind of fun as it became like a game: Choose a person for each concept that needs to brought across, maintain eye contact and explain to them like I would to a friend albeit formally. And it worked.

However, I was nervous in the beginning and may have stumbled upon some words. I also realised that the other habit I have when I am nervous is that I sway slightly or move forwards and backwards. I tried hard to control it during peer teaching but totally forgot about it during the OP. I am aware that this may be distracting and this is something I intend to work on.

Personally this topic is something I feel for as I come from a family of teachers and my intention was to deliver with sincerity and dedicate the presentation to the poor teachers who may have experienced tremendous anxiety in similar situations as discussed in our OP.

Not only has this OP allowed me to assess my strength and weaknesses and grow as a presenter, the process leading up to this OP has enriched me as an individual and I would like to thank everyone who has played a part in it.

Proposal benefits and methodology draft #1

Benefits

Further research will enable us to gather more extensive information and knowledge in this area of research, draw more informed conclusions as well as allow us to propose better recommendations to resolve this problem. We will also be able to make more informed recommendations on improvements or modifications to current communications modules in NUS or even propose new modules.

Methods of Research

In order to better evaluate the feasibility of our proposal, our group decided to gather information about the different communications-related modules taught in NUS and NIE to gain a better understanding of what is being done currently on the communications front. We also researched on other tertiary institutions as well as on theories of experts in this field to gain knowledge on what more can be done and what practices can be adopted from them and applied to NUS.

Since we may not be abreast with the current trends regarding communications or the curriculum in NIE, we interviewed Mrs Pelly Christine Parimala, an ELL staff at NIE to understand what the curriculum in NIE offers as well as her opinions on whether teachers needed to be better equipped on certain communications skills as well as an insight into what those skills might be. Interviews with Professors Mark Wilkinson and Tan Siew Imm from NIE also gave us valuable information to structure further research in the correct direction.

Separate interviews were also conducted with the Senior teacher in Marsiling Secondary school as well as Mr Amos from Beatty Secondary school to obtain the teachers’ point of view. The same issues were targeted such as re-establishing the importance of communications skills, finding out the skills that teachers experience the most problems in as well as how much exposure they have had to practice it before entering teaching and their suggestions for improvements.

In order to further substantiate our proposal, we conducted two separate surveys, one for those graduating from NUS and entering NIE soon and another for current teachers. This decision was made based on the need to obtain responses from the 2 groups so as to equip us with a better understanding of how the needs and abilities of the two different categories have changed from the point of graduation from NUS up to the point when they have started teaching.
The survey will be especially useful to us in gathering essential information on the following areas:

· Whether undergraduates feel they have not had enough exposure in communications skills and are thus feeling unprepared.
· To what extent the undergraduates consider communications skills important as well as which skills they consider important.
· Whether they are aware that communications-related modules are being offered in NUS.
· Reasons why they did not take these modules though they are aware they are present.
· Whether teachers feel they had enough exposure in communications skills in their universities and if NIE courses were helpful.
· To what extent the teachers consider communication skills important as well as which skills they consider important.

Evaluating Intercultural Behaviour

Born and bred in Singapore, I have always prided myself on being culturally aware and tolerant. Coming from the multicultural cosmopolitan city, I thought I knew it all until an experience in the US taught me otherwise.

While I was on summer exchange in the US, some friends and I went sightseeing in San Francisco. It was not the most pleasant trip as my luggage bag had given way prior to my landing there. After painstakingly dragging my luggage up the numerous uphill streets and depositing it at the hostel, we left to explore the place. That was when we happened to chance upon a luggage bag shop on the way. I still remember being surprised that the owners were Chinese. After looking around, I decided to purchase one of the luggage bags but realized I had not brought enough cash with me. I approached the shop owner and asked her what time they would close the shop. I knew I had said something terribly wrong when her friendly face contorted with fury and she started shouting at me furiously in Chinese. I was taken aback and left speechless. I was embarrassed as the other customers in the shop had started gathering to see what the commotion was about. I did not even understand why or what she was scolding me for. My friends apologized to the lady and hurriedly ushered me out of the shop. They later explained to me that the Chinese never ask such a question as it is considered inauspicious and signals that the business will not run well anymore. My reaction to their explanation was anger at the unjust way the lady had behaved towards me. Did she not know that I was not Chinese and that I would not know their cultural taboos?

Though till this day, I have not found the answers to those questions, I have come to terms with the fact that when it comes to culture one can never know it all and that intercultural communication is a very delicate subject. My innocent question asked for the practical purpose of knowing the time the shop would close carried a negative connotation in someone else’s culture. It was after this experience that I truly realized the vulnerability of all intercultural relationships.

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APPLICATION LETTER DRAFT #2

Divya Dharshini Harikrishan

Block 340, Woodlands Avenue 1

#11-585, Singapore 730340

(65)90110498

augustaries_88@hotmail.com

February 5, 2010

Dear Ms Wong,

In response to your ad on the JobStreet website, I would like to apply for the position of Recruitment cum Human Resource Officer. I have just graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelors Degree (First Class Honours) in Lifescience and believe that I possess the necessary credentials for the job. This job appealed to me as I am very much interested in Human Resource and I enjoy working with healthcare professionals.

The biomedical curriculum I have undergone as well as the undergraduate research project I was involved in have given me ample opportunities to work with representatives from Pharmaceutical companies and healthcare workers. This puts me in a good position to be recruiting healthcare workers as I will be able to spot talent in the specific science fields.

Serving as the Secretary for the Red Cross NUS Chapter AY09/10 has allowed me to come into close contact with various professionals in the healthcare department. These contacts I have formed over the years will allow me to network with them, understand the current market trend and actively source out for potential candidates.

I also held the position of Human Resource Director for Project RICE, one of the major Red Cross projects. As the HR Director I had to source out and recruit over 300 committed volunteers. Conducting volunteer briefings and entertaining their queries has honed my communication and interpersonal skills. Working on numerous projects as part of a team has made me a good team player. However, the added individual responsibilities has allowed me to develop as a confident, independent worker.

In addition to these practical experiences, the business modules I have completed in NUS accord me the knowledge needed in developing business models or plans for your company.
My qualifications are well suited to the goals and expectations of your company. I welcome an opportunity to discuss how my experience and skills can be of service to your company. I thank you for your consideration and look forward to meeting with you.

Yours Sincerely,

Divya Dharshini Harikrishan

Signature

Divya
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Solution to Interpersonal Conflict

This was a real interpersonal conflict that I experienced and I did manage to somewhat resolve it.

This is what I did:

1. I approached the teacher again to explain to her clearly the circumstances under which I had allowed the students to behave as such.

2. I assured her that there was no problem with the discipline of the class.

3. I asked her to give me advice on how to deal with them in case they got rowdy in the future.

4. I readjusted my teaching style and adhered somewhat to the rules that she laid down without cramping my style too much.

All in all, we did part on a good note. Though she still was not fully happy with me doing things my way, she seemed to accept the fact that I preferred to do things differently and let me be.

Interpersonal Conflict: Please leave me alone!!!!

People are different. They think differently. They act differently. Where there are differences, conflicts arise. So interpersonal conflicts are inevitable but it still hurts when they occur.

My experience of a serious interpersonal conflict with someone occurred when I went to a primary school to relief teach right after my ‘A’s. I got along well with the kids and everything was smooth sailing until one fateful Friday afternoon.

On that Friday, the kids had been exceptionally fast with their work and since we were ahead of schedule, I had given them some free time. Coincidently, some of the upper primary school boys were playing soccer in the field that was situated right outside my classroom. Some of the kids got excited by the activity outside and gathered around the window to watch the game. Since the noise level was low and it was their free time anyway I let them be. Unfortunately, one of the senior teachers in the school happened to walk by. She stopped in her tracks, stomped into my class and started shouting at the kids. I was momentarily taken aback. She reprimanded the kids for not behaving during class time and subtly accused me of not controlling the kids well enough. All in all it was an embarrassing situation. However, it did not end there. Thereafter whenever, the teacher saw me, she would impose on me and explicitly teach me how to handle the kids.

The underlying problem I soon came to realize was our differences in opinion as to how to handle the kids. She preferred an authoritarian style, while I preferred more freedom. I resented the fact that she imposed on me and I felt helpless as I was forced to do things in a way I did not like. Still I tried to be fair and put myself in her shoes. I was able to understand her fear that a newbie like me may not be disciplining the kids enough or that I was being complacent in my teaching but it still took the pleasure out of my teaching experience.

If you had been in such a situation, what would you have done? How would you have approached her? Can talking solve differences in opinion?

Effective communication skills – To speak or not to?

Hey Everyone. Let me start my entry by saying that this has definitely happened or will happen sometime along the course of our lives. This situation where you speak to someone and desperately try to convey an idea over to them but they never seem to get it. If you are thinking been there, done that, then you are not alone. I have been suffering as such lately at my lab. What I did before was to blame my mentor saying “Oh well. This person never understands me so maybe we are just not on the same wavelength so lets ignore it and move on!”

That was when the title of this course caught my eye as it popped up in my NUS mail. The mere words “Effective communication skills” opened up a whole new can of worms. A lot of what ifs started cropping up in my mind. What if the problem was with the way I communicated my ideas? What if my non verbal cues were so putting off that the other person was uncomfortable discussing the topic with me?

In the span of the 2 lessons we have had, many interesting concepts have been discussed. For example, the idea of a personal filter is something I never would have placed importance on when communicating with someone before, however, I understand how critical it is now. I am now able to appreciate the way a second person may interpret or view things I say based on their own filter. This has added a whole new dimension to my life and I guess I will always view the conversations I have with people hereafter differently.

Having looked at all the communication channels, personally I feel that I have always had difficulty in verbal face to face communication situations. In terms of the communication skills, the encoding and decoding parts have always been the trickiest. I always fear the situations where you have just briefed someone on a bit of information and this person looks at you with a bright smile, nodding like he understood everything you said, yet there is a gnawing feeling in the back of your mind that he did not get half of what you said or the other situations when you hesitate to approach someone because you fear you may be overreacting to what they said. So hopefully learning some effective communication skills will help me communicate better in the future and be a more confident individual. Lastly, lets also not forget how helpful this module will be when our prospective interviewer decides we get the job right after reading our application letter or when we sweep them off their feet at the interview so to say...

Adios for now.