CRITICAL REFLECTION

Module Reflection

My goals at the beginning of this module were to improve on my speech and enhance my sentence structure and grammar. Reflecting on my progress, I have definitely made improvements in both areas through actively participating in class or group activities and actively seeking feedback from my classmates and Professor Brad. By continuously speaking in proper English during class, I've definitely become more confident and natural in speaking in front of the class. This has also allowed me to identify and address the repeated issues in my grammar and sentence structure.

One area where I noticed significant improvement is my ability to construct clearer and more grammatically accurate sentences, especially in both verbal and written communication. Even so, I still feel that there are still improvements that could be made for my fluency and also how I engage with my audience. I do find myself still occasionally hesitate while trying to construct grammatically correct responses during class discussions and presentations. I also realised that getting constructive feedback consistently has been the reason for my improvements.

To continue building on these skills, I plan to practice speaking English in different settings beyond the classroom to improve my fluency. I will also incorporate regular self-assessments and utilise grammar-checking tools like gAI to further refine my sentence structure. Reading more and paying attention to sentence structures can also help with my progress.

Overall, this module has helped me gain an appreciation to critical thinking and also communicating. It teaches me the importance of constantly getting feedbacks on my work and how it can help me improve. While I am grateful and happy with the progress I have made during the course of this module, I will still try to further hone my skills and achieve a greater height in terms of effective communication.

Project Reflection

For the research project, I concentrated more on honing my presentation skills. Initially, I saw presentations as a simple way to share information, but the oral presentation has taught me that how you carry yourself and how you engage the audience during presentation has a significant impact on how effective the presentation is. 

I discovered that effective presentations are not just about delivering well-structured content but also about creating a connection with the audience. Techniques like varying tone, using appropriate gestures, and maintaining eye contact are critical in capturing attention and trying to convey the message effectively.

The importance of preparation and rehearsal became apparent during this process. By thoroughly understanding my topic and organizing my ideas systematically, I felt more confident in my delivery. Repeated practice also allowed me to refine my speaking pace, address inconsistencies, and ensure a cohesive flow throughout the presentation.

I also learned the value of visual aids in reinforcing key ideas. Using clear, visually appealing slides helped simplify complex concepts and made the content more relatable and easier to understand. These tools played a significant role in strengthening the overall impact of my presentation.

Another critical takeaway was the need to be spontaneous at times. Being able to spontaneously continue the presentation without any hiccups despite forgetting certain details is definitely a good skill to have. You also have to be spontaneous when answering questions from the audience at times. 

Overall, this experience have helped me look at presentations in a different light. I was also able to learn from my peers' presentations on what to avoid during presentations and also learn from their strengths as well. I am committed to further improve my presentation skills as the sky is the limit and will hope for a better presentations in the future.