Since the start of the trimester till now, a lot of things have changed. We have all gotten more familiar with each other and have all started to have a much better understanding of one another. When the trimester first started my goals were simple and were very general in nature, been that all I had hoped to achieved was expanding my skillset and improving on what I already knew. With goals so broad, I believe it would instead be much harder not to accomplish them then it is to do so.
It is now the end of the first trimester and I'm glad to say that this module has not only reminded me on how to think critically but also made it much clearer on how to do so and more natural to apply it in life. As the module has proactively created ideal scenarios to put critical thinking into actual practice while actively encouraging us to apply it everywhere else.
Sure there was also a lot of knowledge I had to learn or relearn like how to write a proper letter or email, and the APA 7th edition citation style, but the wisdom of how to think critically, I find that more beneficial that everything else. Not only for its versatility, but also due to how effective it is or can be in all the different situations I imagine myself being in, in the near future.
One particular time I realized critical thinking had really helped me out was when the initial brainstorming we had to do for the projects that our modules were throwing at us. It was at the point where everything and everyone was in a mess, slowing down and thinking logical in a systematic manner has allow us to proceed smoothly with our projects on numerous occasions.
For effective communication itself, when my team and I were writing the final report, I learned that I subconsciously wrote it like I was writing a pitch. One of my group member, Wen Qiang had pointed it out for me and due to the constructive feedback I received, I went back and had a good look though of what I wrote and realised how is wasn't appropriate for me to write the report in that manner so I had to rephrase the way I wrote the report.
Knowing that report writing was never my forte. I instead choose to focus more on what I believe was, verbal communication as well as presentation skill. A crucial lesson I picked up in back in polytechnic was that while I might be enthusiastic about active contributions towards the project, being overly active also meant that I was preventing others from getting their chance to do so as well. With that in mind, while a truly balanced pmamount of contribution is impossible to achieve, I believe in this project, I was at least able to pull my own weight.
Working with different people is always challenging, but if everyone is able to help out with what they excel in. What will be delivered will be something that will definitely bring delight to all. In my project group, I found Asher to be really good at writing the report, Farhanah had provided really helpful questions and feedback about what we did or how we were about to do something and Wen Qiang was always providing very sound suggestions and explanation of why we should be doing things in a certain manner instead of how we're going about it.
Altogether the experience has definitely benefited all of us as we help each other with the skill that we were weaker in. Personally I had received more help than I was able to give, idea on what to add onto what I wrote, wordsand pharse that weren't appropriate for the formal setting of the presentation and much more.
There's a lot for me to take from this project but the feedback and suggestions to my report writing and the tone I should set for the oral presentation are things I will definitely keep in mind.