Critical Reflection

 At the start of this module, I had one thing in mind, and that is to improve myself language-wise. I didn’t have any specific goal but to improve myself generally. As I progress through the weeks, I realized that I need to improve on my critical thinking and communication skills. Had I not attended university and gone through the same module but with a heavier intensity, I might have gone about the rest of my life being stagnant in this part of myself.

Communication does not necessarily mean speaking or conversing with words. Writing letters for different purposes also falls under communication. I feel that I have achieved one of my objectives by the end of this module because with the materials handed to me and the knowledge my professor has passed on to me, I can write a better letter generally compared to thirteen weeks ago. I know for a fact that we write letters differently and it is ultimately catering to the person that is going to receive and read it. You cannot write a letter the way you write to your pen pal in other countries for example and send it to the president of an organization. There are certain rules and techniques we must abide by and adopt when we write to a higher person.

Professor Brad also shared with us the Paul-Elder Critical Thinking Model. I personally did not know that there is such a model for critical thinking. I have always thought that we can only improve the way we think critically exclusively through experience. To learn that we can impose intellectual standards on what and how we think gave me insight. By remembering the model, I can expand my thinking, foresee the implications and consequences and in time, come to a well-reasoned conclusion.

Going into the team project, I would say it didn’t take much of me to mingle around and get to know more about my groupmates. I know myself enough that I can get along with anyone I met. The challenge lies in presenting and teamwork skills. I love to present. I love to be at the centre of attention and share knowledge about a particular topic or about what I have learnt. I do get nervous sometimes especially when I need to present formally. Before the final presentation which will be graded, I read more about Garr Reynolds and his tips on how to prepare and deliver a presentation. I am now more confident than I was before, and I hope to continue improving my presentation skills.

Working in teams is never a challenge for me as I have always believed that we can brainstorm on a particular topic together and come up with different ideas as each of us have a different way of thinking. That part of working in teams is fine with me but the challenge is living up to the expectations of the other groupmates. We all work differently and our styles of thinking and understanding differ from each other. I for one need to always go the extra mile than how I am as a person generally to constantly meet expectations. I would say that it is for the betterment of myself to have to come out of my comfort zone, but I do not necessarily enjoy it. Personally, it gives unnecessary stress to the other teammates and eventually, it’ll affect the morale of the group. I believe to be in a team is to be one in anything. We need to always communicate our feelings and our capabilities and always offer help in any way possible. Through this experience, I have realized my shortcomings and I hope to be a better team member in the future groups that I’ll be in.