Tuesday, April 12, 2011

( Post #06 ) Final Reflections

          Here, at last, at journey’s end, I now look back with the benefit of hindsight upon this module and what it has meant for me. It has certainly been an eventful and productive semester, the many colourful characters I’ve been acquainted with contributing to the fact in no small part.

          ES2007S has taught me a multitude of practical skills. I knew not how to write resumes and application letters before, not to mention a proper business proposal. My abilities in face-to-face communication have also been honed through our lessons in active listening and the ample practice we have had in making and sustaining good eye contact. Breaking bad news to people has also become easier since I was introduced to the strategy of using buffers. With regard to the “7Cs”, six of which I was already proficient in prior to taking this module, I have finally learnt the value of conciseness, the last “C” that had previously still eluded me.

          Class interactions have been a blast. I have never witnessed a noisier tutorial, nor one that, without form or structure, facilitated such a level of creative discussion and spontaneity. In our online interactions, my comrades have also displayed the utmost courtesy in their comments on my blog, for which I thank them profusely. I am, in particular, pleasantly flattered by some of their compliments and reciprocate with goodwill of my own.

          Overall, it has been an enlightening three months. My literacy with blogs and facebook has increased and while I have always been an apt writer, I am now a better speaker.

16 comments:

  1. Cool, cool!

    I've always been a fan of you Isaac, and I personally, and honestly, don't think your Group 4 classmates know how good you really are in speaking and especially writing, because they don't give you the sort of compliments only I give you, that shows keen and active appreciation of your skills and qualities.

    You mentioned you learned conciseness, the same can be said of me in that respect; and my final 2 posts were more concise than yours I think. Haha!

    And because you write your ideas and feelings so well, I tend to identify with them much more closely and seriously, and my empathy is greatest for you, nobody else, honestly! This tells you about the power of having a good proficiency in the English language; that's indispensable, and also you need a good heart to express those ideas to me, and I'm sure you have one.

    Overall, out of the students from both groups, you honestly warmed my heart the most! I feel way better than infactuation, you have my allegiance!

    Cheers
    Cheers

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  2. Thank you for your kind words, Mark. Personally, I am also impressed with your tenacity in refusing to compromise the quality (and quantity) of your written work despite pressure to do so by those who would prefer to be spoon-fed information in bite-sized chunks. It is rare indeed to find someone with such an appreciation for the beauty of the written word.

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  3. Thanks Isaac, hopefully we have both inspired one another this semester.

    Cheers to that!!!

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  4. hi Isacc,
    It is definitely great to have you in our class.
    If mark and you were in the same class, I think it would be more fun....

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  5. Has anyone noticed that no one seems to be able to spell my name right? :)

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  6. HAHAHA!! this is a MARKed improvement Issaacc! you're using smileys!

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  7. HAHA Isaac! I must say its really interesting having you around in class! Your input was fully appreciated by many of my classmates, and its really funny to see how your input changed the dynamics of the class!

    Thanks for being in such a crazy module! =)

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  8. Hello Isaac. I always spelt your name correctly. :) I am really impressed by your well-versed knowledge. Thank you for sharing with me your knowledge and English words to improve my vocabulary. Also, many thanks to you for editing my English and provided me pointers of how to improve.

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  9. Hey Isaac!

    What can I say... Being in the same class with you certainly has been interesting. You have a unique point of view and an even more unique way of expressing it. I think you'll make a fine teacher someday.

    Is it just me though or have you been loosening up in the final few weeks? Keep it up! Let loose, buy some non-blue shirts and enjoy life.:)

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  10. Thank you, Isaac, for the succinct and yet comprehensive reflection on your take away from this module. It's satisfying to me that a fellow like you who had such confidence in his writing skills could find that he could pick up some pointers through our course of study.

    I agree with Faizal, too, when he says that you seem to have "loosened up." Is that because of you developing greater confidence in your one-to-one interactions, or is it simply that we slowly but surely came to know the "real" Isaac, the one who in fact does have the normal range of human emotions -- contrary to what he says -- and that he is apt to demonstrate those when he feels secure in his environment?

    Whatever the case, it has been a pleasure having you in class. Thank you for your many contributions. But most of all, thank you for assuring me wit many examples early on that if I wanted an insightful answer to a question, all I needed to do was look in your direction.

    Best wishes!

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  11. The "loosening up" Faizal observed in the final few weeks is probably due to the many interactions I have had in this class, which exposed me to a wide range of expressions of human behaviour and emotion, enabling me to widen my own repertoire. As I can only emulate that which I have witnessed, I suppose I have all my classmates to thank for teaching me how to be more realistic and convincing in blending in with the “normal” crowd. Then again, it’s something of a tradition for physicists to be ever so slightly eccentric.

    Also, contrary to popular belief, my T-shirts are not all the same colour. I have a wide variety of sky-blue, baby-blue and powder-blue shirts.

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  12. HAHAHA!! Isaac, the eccentricity is a self fulfilling prophecy!

    Having you in the class had certainly been a most delightful experience. I have to admit, I have never met anyone like you before, Isaac. And therefore, it explains my keen interest to find out more about you!

    The answers that you give in class never fail to drop my jaws. I especially remember the Chinese embassy comment that you made, because I was not sure if you meant it as a joke. If you had, I believe it was the first joke that you made in class..right? haha.. Your 'quantisation of information' and textbook definition of culture amazed me beyond anyone had ever did.

    So, if you would, please come for the class gathering that Yu Tian would be organising! WE WANNA FIND OUT MORE ABOUT YOU! COME AH!

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  13. Glad to have known you Isaac. I am proud of you, knowing that you have grown so much as a presenter and writer in this module. You have a great command of the English language and never fail to speak with confidence. Keep in up!

    I would like to wish you all the best for your future endeavors.

    Cheers!

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  14. Hey Isaac!

    It's been great knowing you! I've always been amazed at your knowledge, and I'm sure everyone in class was delighted to hear what you always have to offer us!

    I didn't know that you actually had different shades of blue for your shirts. Just curious, is blue your favourite colour?

    Nonetheless, it's been a pleasure meeting you. All the best in your future endeavours!

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  15. Hey Isaac. We made it to the end of the course! Yeah! I am glad that we completed this ‘race’ together. I enjoyed working with you in the project and you never fail to amaze me with your vast knowledge. You are truly an asset to the team. My jaw almost dropped as you were able to memorize the statistical facts of the OP to the 3 sig.fig. I can’t do that, LoL.

    I remembered you sat beside me on the first lesson and you are an International Chess player. You impressed me a lot as you have continued to excel in the 2 fields that I have left, both in scientific research and international chess. As I look at you now, you remind me of my past as how much I used to immerse myself in science books and chess. However, I was never a chess player as good as you are. At least you made it to the nationals.

    Well, if you ask me why do I switch field into education and take on other stuff. The only good answer is that these things are FUN! Yeah, FUN! So do try some new stuff sometimes. I am glad that you created a Facebook account. That is fun =) Life is so rich and colourful. Let’s live lfe to the fullest.

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  16. Hey Isaac!

    it was amazing to have you around in the class. Like Brad mentioned, all he needed was to look in your direction for an insightful and critical analysis of the situation.

    I really like the way you integrate and exhibit critical thinking in all aspects of your life. That is something that i've been trying to do - but have so far fallen short of.

    It has really been very nice working with you - even though it was only for a short while during the mock interview sessions. But it has certainly been fun, interesting and amusing the way you "grill" the interviewees.

    All the best for your exams!!

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