Reflection on Learning

What I really appreciate from this module is the intercultural environment and the chance to self-evaluate.

This course provided me with opportunities to practice to speak up more, in class discussions, presentations, mock interview, and group meetings etc. I feel that to express myself and my thoughts comprehensibly is really important, even more so when our class consists of students from diverse cultural backgrounds. Because of the different levels of understanding of language, social norms and values, perceptions of a particular issue by each of us may be different from one another’s. The sharing in class from the exchange students were interesting and opened up my perspective to a certain extent. The importance of intercultural knowledge is made even more relevant to me as my group had to present this topic for peer teaching. As such, I learnt a lot both from the class environment and the research which is required of me.

Initially I took up this course as I had to overload this semester and this was the only module which could fit into my timetable. In addition, my seniors recommended me to take this module, quoting that it will be useful especially since we will need to do up our application letter and resume for Industrial Attachment by end of Year 2. I did not check out what the module is about and went ahead to bid for it, thinking that this was my only choice. In the past, I often research if there’s any project work or emphasis on language in the grading of the module before considering for bidding as English Language has always been a barrier for me. I try to refrain from group work as it often means the need to spend a lot of time on getting everyone’s agreement before proceeding. Indeed, both peer teaching and research proposal involved and required much of my time and effort, especially since I always expect the best out of myself in work. I began to regret taking up this module as my work starts to pile up due to most of time spent on these group works. In fact, as some of the deadlines clashed with my test dates, I did not have sufficient time to study for my CAs because I had to consider that my group mates will be affected if I don’t finish my part in time. However, this only made me more conscious of the need for me to manage my time more effectively. It was hard to prioritize as my core modules were of heavy content. I learnt that insufficient management on my part will cause me to make sacrifices. It may not be a pleasant experience, but it definitely served as a good learning experience. 

It is better to experience failure now than to fail when we are out in the workplace. Only through failure will we find success.