The Colourful Module

Time really flies and it has come to an end of the semester. I could still remember vividly before the start of the semester, I asked my friends Shawn and Xiu Qin to take this Profession Communication module with me. For me, it is not only the end of this module, it is also the end of my education journey. After 2 more weeks, there will be no more tests, exams, lectures for me. Thus, I wanted to end this semester learning some soft skills which will be applicable in the workplace and in all social setting.


Before taking this module, I aim to learn how to write application letter, cover letter, interview skills. My mentality was "Since I still have s/u and I have to pay for similar course if I taken it outside class, why not just take it in school."  It was after taking this module that I realized how much work we need to do! Beside those that I mentioned, there was peer teaching, proposal writing, taking of minutes, writing of agenda, oral presentation and a lot more! Nevertheless, what actually is happens is, the more you do the more you gain.


There are many challenges I faced and skills gained during the course of this module. Firstly, As a computer "noob", I don't even know how to set up a blog, not to say a wiki page. In addition, it was an advantage to me whereby I had a group member, Mark who is from computer engineering. I learnt how to change the background of the powerpoint slides design from him. After this module, I learn how to set up a blog, wiki page as well as create good powerpoint slides. These skills might be simple to many of you but not to me!


Secondly, I learnt many skills when doing the proposal, namely team building, surveying, interviewing, organizing of ideas, promotional writing, presenting skills. While doing a proposal is hassle, whereby you need to create surveys, carry out interviews, come out with minutes of meeting and agenda, it actually enables me to learn how to write a real life proposal. Before taking this module, I still remember in one of my holiday job meeting session I had to sit in to take minutes of meeting. I had no idea what to take note of during the meeting, the tone, the language used in recording and how to compile the information thereafter. All I had was a sample minutes from my manager. After this, I believe I can sit down and write a more professional minutes. Writing skills is not something that I can learn overnight. However, I have a team mate Shawn who possess good language ability and is able to write persuasively. What I can learn from him is the style of writing. More reading has to be done in order to improve my word bank, writing as well as communication skills.


Thirdly, I gained very useful skills of writing a proper resume, cover letter as well as interview skill. These are the skills which I want to learn before I graduate. I do ponder in some time of the semester, there are so many workshops that NUS offer to teach these skills in specific. Hence in some point of the module, I had the dilemma of why should I still continue taking this module? I am glad that I didn't dropped this module in the end and been the managed to pass the last stage and most heavy part of the module, the proposal. Just like one of my classmates Ao Yun mentioned, even though from this module we might not be able to grasp all the skills yet but from this point in time, we would take note of the skills and practice them in future, to further improve some of the skills taught.


Lastly I would like to mention a valuable relationship that I have gained... that is FRIENDSHIP. Like many of my classmates mention in the sharing session, it really feels as if we are back to our secondary or junior college days whereby we have a more chances of interaction unlike other modules where we only have lectures. Outside class, we complain about school work on facebook! Its the first module in my entire university days which I have soooo many class photos from a module. I would like to thank all of you for making this module so enjoyable and the memories forged.

(The first lesson, I had a comment on my back " BLUR" from Nicholas. Akash who always sound very intimidating was actually quite lenient in my interview session. Mark is a very nice team mate and friend. Hui Ting who is always very cheery. Xiu Qin is a very studious girl. Elaine is a very smart girl, always smiling :). AoYun is still a very innocent girl who believes Shawn that we are siblings. ChenYan ,sweet looking, a little blur at times. Doris laughed at me when her presentation ended hahaha. Desmond a very serious man. Terence the Terter agreed that I looked 16. Chen Chen my peer teaching group mate. Ella a very cute girl. Fahmi the life sciences students who don't look he is in the fourth year. Wee Lee saved my life by lending me his lab coat. Kelvin is a very confident person. Shawn who is able to translate my idea into words and Akash mentioned "Having brilliant ideas means little, getting the world to believe in them is the real peak that needs to be scaled.". Last but not least, Miss Lim a hardworking tutor who is always guiding us, following up on our work even on Sundays. YOU ALL MADE THE LESSON COLOURFUL)

Its finally over!

Yes! Oral presentation is finally over!!! I must say that I really have great team mates, Shawn and Mark who make this project an enjoyable one. Each of us has a different forte and contribute to the group in our strongest area. Shawn has the language ability, Mark has strong computer knowledge while I contribute my ideas.

Chinese have this saying " one minute on stage, ten years off-stage". It was indeed a long preparation for this 20minutes of oral presentation. Before the presentation, we had to prepare our script, practice our script, come out with presentation slides, meetings and so on... We had to practice our oral presentation together to ensure we do not exceed our time limit and smooth transition from one presenter to the next. In addition, we also fine tuned our slides and spot mistakes on each other's slides during the meeting. During the last preparation session, we even had to burn our whole Sunday away! We are each other's audience and asked each other questions regarding our presentation. True enough, those questions are also the questions our classmates asked. We also recorded our own presentation during our mock presentation and looked at our verbal and non verbal cues. It is an excellent method review our own presentation and correct any mistakes. Some mistakes I made during our mock presentation includes looking at my script most of the time, having little eye contact with "audience" and placing slides in the wrong order.

During the "big" day, I tried to correct previous mistakes by knowing my slides and script inside out. I had cue cards only for certain points which I cannot remember so that I ensure eye contact with the audience on the presentation day. Some improvements that I made include being loud, increase in eye contact, appropriate gesture (the part on "sedikit, sedikit, lama lama jadi BUKIT", the whole class laughed. I believe it is due to my gesture which captured their attention). Nevertheless, I noticed quite a number of mistakes I made during the presentation. I remain rooted in one position, slouched, blanked out the slides accidentally (even though I tried to control the wireless presenter). During the Q&A session, I failed to rephrase Aoyun's question, used a taboo phrase "As I mentioned earlier......" and eye contact in the direction of the person who asked question.

I must also say that I am very proud of our slides. The background used was fitted to our theme of recycling. On every slide, 6x7 rule was strictly adhered to. The animation used was also appropriate. I like my slide on "sedikit, sedikit, lama lama jadi BUKIT" and the slide on "proposed scheme for IUT" the most :)

I was more prepared for this presentation compared to our peer teaching. It might be because we have done up with the proposal, hence had better grasp on our content. Since this project was a topic we have chosen, I had greater interest in the topic presented compared to peer teaching topic. The use of slides was also more efficient as it was less wordy and with appropriate pictures to capture attention and better elaborate on certain points. From the preparation to the delivery of my presentation, overall I think there is an improvement compared to peer teaching session.

I LOVE TEAM GREEN!!

Lack of Inter-cultural Understanding. Babi = Doll?

Useem, J., & Useem, R. (1963). Human Organizations, 22(3).

"Culture has been defined in a number of ways, but most simply, as the learned and shared behavior of a community of interacting human beings" .

Singapore has been known for its multicultural and multilingual society. Since the start of our education life, we are exposed to events such as racial harmony day. The event is to commemorate the 1964 Race Riots, which took place on 21 July 1964. It is also a day for school to celebrate Singapore's success as a racially harmonious nation and society built on a rich diversity of culture and heritage. Students are encouraged to be dressed in their traditional costumes such as the Cheongsam and Baju Kurung. Traditional games are also played.

Despite commemorating racial harmony day, we all know that understanding between different cultures cannot be achieved within a day. Conflicts arise when there is a lack in understanding of other behaviors, language and ways of thinking. I would like to account a conflict that took place when I was in primary school.

I still remember when I was in lower primary, I overheard “Babi, Babi, Babi…..” from the Chinese boys to the Malay boys in our class. It was a word that would anger my Malay classmates. I did not understand why that would anger my Malay classmates. I thought maybe they did not like Barbie dolls and was offended when the Chinese boy teased them with Barbie doll as it was considered sissy for boys to play with dolls.

Being a rather insensitive, naughty, little girl, I was unaware of the seriousness of usage of this word. I then used “Chao Babi ~” on a Malay boy in my class out of mischief. He then became very angry and spat saliva towards my direction. In the end he threw his things in his pencil case at me which eventually resulted in physical fight and was brought to the attention of my form teacher. Both of us were punished and were made to stand outside the staff room. I felt utterly embarrassed, scared and a little guilty for scolding him. I even had to write 100 “Sorry, I won’t do it again” and had beatings and scoldings from my parents.

Now that we have grown up we realised that we were rather childish. Besides that, I realised that Babi actually means pig and not Barbie doll! Pig is a taboo to the Malays. Malays consider pigs to be unclean.  Between many cultures, the same set of gesture or behaviour can be interpreted differently. For instance, showing the thumb held upwards in some country means “everything’s ok” while it is understood in some Islamic countries as a rude sexual sign.

In summary, the basic qualities that can avoid any kind of cultural conflict are being sensitive and self-conscious.

Interpersonal Conflict - Customer Service

Conflicts are inevitable. It can occurs when the values, perception or opinions of individuals are contradictory and agreement has not been met.

Customer service I must say is really not an easy job. However, it is worse when you have colleagues that are not understanding. 5 years ago, after ‘O’ levels, I held a holiday job as a waitress serving banquets at hotel xxx. Every event was a tiring one, however, it is a bonus if you get to work with colleague which you can get along with. I still remember vividly on Christmas eve, I was scheduled for work. Like everyone else, I was quite reluctant to work on a Christmas eve, nevertheless because the manager plead for help so I reluctantly went to work.

On that night I was made to serve 2 tables because of the lack of waiter and waitresses on that day. Service was slow because it was made worse that halal customers had to be serve separately which resulted in 4 trips to serve 1 course instead of 2 trips for  1 course. I had informed my manager that I might not be able to cope but they did not take any action about it. Thereafter, customers complained and my in-charge scolded me for the bad service. I knew I am on the verge of crying so I tried to smile, explaining my situation at the same time. However, my in-charged thought that I was not serious so he told me in my face in front of my other colleagues ‘Can you please stop joking around, I am very serious.’ Well, I was very serious too! In actual fact I had already told my manage about not being able to cope but no actions were done! Not being able to control my tears anymore, I cried and threw all my jobs aside and told my manager that I am going off, not going to go back to work as a waitress ever again. My manager was very understanding and allowed me to go off. I got to know from other colleagues that my in-charge was scolding me behind my back for being irresponsible. Of course, I never stepped back to that hotel as a waitress.

I do not feel that I am being irresponsible. Have you seen anyone serving with a crying face? If I can turn the clock back, I guess I would try even harder to control my tears. What would you do if you were me?

Application Letter

JOB SEARCH
	Company	The Learning Lab
	Job Title	Specialist Teaching Associates
	Location	Mountbatten Square,United Square
	Shape the future with us. The Learning Lab runs premium learning programmes in English, Mathematics and Science at primary and secondary school levels. We are committed to creating our own distinctive brand of education that ensures both academic excellence and world-readiness. We take pride in nurturing the next generation of leaders by cultivating each student’s unique talents and abilities. We aim to take each child on an exciting learning journey, and we are willing to go the extra mile. We are looking for the very best. Joining the private education sector translates to greater flexibility and an accelerated progress track. As a Specialist Teaching Associate at The Learning Lab, you will be put through a rigorous and challenging training program to equip you to become an excellent educator . We seek charismatic candidates from diverse academic backgrounds with a passion for teaching, superb communication skills and proven academic excellence. Make your journey with us today and start shaping the future.
	Responsibilities
	The Role: ·  Accelerated teaching career track ·  All disciplines of study ·  For the passionate educator who absolutely loves nurturing young talent ·  The best for the best:     Starting $3,700     Post 6-month Probation $4,000
	Requirements
	Please email your resume to hr@thelearninglab.com.sg For more information, please visit our website at www.thelearninglab.com.sg Please quote the reference no. NUS2008630STA in your application The Learning Lab NURTURING FUTURE LEADERS®

___________________________________________________________

Pop Kon

Blk 123 Clementi Ave 1

#12-34

Singapore 123456

+65 8123456

popkon@hotmail.com

13 February 2011

HR Department            

hr@thelearninglab.com.sg

Dear Sir/Madam,

APPLICATION FOR THE POST OF SPECIALIST TEACHING ASSOCIATE

I read with interest regarding your advertisement on your posting for Specialist Teaching Associate from the Nus ejob Centre website (reference no: NUS2008630STA).  As a firm believer that education is an investment in oneself, I would like to join the team in leading the students to achieve academic excellence and equip them with skills for their future.

I graduated from National University of Singapore (NUS) with a Bachelors of Science degree. Being a versatile individual, I have conducted private tuitions and taught students from primary to secondary to junior college level.  As an entry-level educator, I would like to utilize my lively attitude in teaching student with great enthusiasm. With my administrative and institutional abilities, I would also work to perform administrative tasks and responsibilities.

As an entry level, my aim would be to learn new and old strategies of teaching. I would like to explore and share my little knowledge between students and other teaching staff. Furthermore, I would also like to learn how to motivate, improve on leadership quality, improve creativity, and establish oneself as the most competent educator. Slowly and steadily, I hope to utilize my qualities of being patient, kind-hearted, value based, knowledgeable in order to learn how to be an educationist who makes a mark on the minds of the students.

I have attached my resume for your perusal. Thank you for considering my application. I would appreciate the opportunity to be interviewed and look forward to hearing from you in the near future. Please feel free to contact me at 8123 4567 or by email at popkon@hotmail.com

Yours faithfully,

Pop Kon

Attached: Resume

Why is effective communication important?

Image taken from: http://www.fine-tooning.com/Cartoons.html

Communication, whether you like it or not, is present in every setting be it in business, in our workplace, in our class, at home or in our social life. Practicing both your communicating and listening skills is essential in getting your idea across and receiving the speaker’s idea.

Despite knowing the importance of communication and listening, I must admit that I do not practice them effectively. Whenever I enter a new environment , I would often feel out of place because I have a problem  interacting with people whom I barely know. Sometimes I felt small and incompetent because of my command of language. I am afraid that I will be judged upon the way I communicate, thus at times I choose the keep my thoughts to myself. In a day-to-day conversation, I realize that I am always running out of topics to talk to my friends. Silence is golden while too much silence between friends will lead to awkwardness. Hence I always envy those who has lots to say even to a stranger. Why is that so? How did they do it? I figured that it is time that I step out of my comfort zone and learn some of these communication skills from this module as it will be even more important in future in my workplace.