Reflections

This module is definitely one of the most fun and simultaneously educative modules that I have taken so far. Over the course of the module, I realised the importance of presenting oneself in a formal setting. This aspect of professional communication is extremely important and was something that I had not given much thought to prior to this module.

Previously, I had often received comments on my presentation skills. Things like my voice being too soft, my body being rigid or my eye contact wavering too much. The feedback I got from my tutor for my first presentation for this module was also similar. My voice projection was not clear and it ended up seeming like I had swallowed up half of my speech. However, I did get positive feedback on how I maintained my eye contact and my gestures.

Through my first presentation, I learnt that non-verbal communication was as important as verbal communication. How one uses his hands to gesture, how one places himself on the podium or stage when speaking, and one’s facial expressions contribute to how the audience understands his message.

Also, it is not just presentations where para-linguistic aspect come into to play in conveying a message properly. Even in situations like interviews and group discussions, one should be very aware of what kind of vibe he or she is giving off through the unsaid. Moreover, when it comes to nonverbal communications, we should also take into consideration possible inter-cultural mis-communications.

During my interview, I was once again reminded that my voice was not loud enough. However, I told myself that I should correct that aspect of my presentations as soon as I could. Fortunately, I was told that there was an improvement in that part by the time I finished my final oral presentation.

Finally, I would like to thank my tutor, Mme Fazilah and all by classmates who made this module a fun and self-discovering journey with so much learning happening throughout. I hope that this beginning helps me mould myself into becoming a better person; not just a better professional.

Reflections on oral presentation

The group presentation seemed, for me, to be a daunting task in the beginning. Formal presentations were not exactly my forte so I was trying to compensate for that by preparing well. My team mates were an excellent help to me during this preparation. Since out team started discussing on our research topic very early, we had a rather decent idea on what our research issue was and we were rather well prepared; in theory.

On D-day, I felt rather light headed because of a bad night’s sleep. When the presentation started, I grew more anxious because my part, along with Hari’s formed the crux of our presentation: the proposal itself. When it came to me, my throat went dry and I could not present as well as I wanted to. I was too often at loss for words and had to look back at my script to keep me going. This eventually hindered me from keeping good eye contact. Also, there were a few problems with some of the slides: the screen ratio that I made the presentation for did not match the one I presented on. This meant that, in a few of my slides, only part of the slide was displayed.

However, there were a few silver linings. Md. Fazilah mentioned that I had improved on my voice projection. I had the issue of being too soft during my peer teaching. I did take a conscious effort to work on that aspect and I am glad that it paid off. Also, I did feel that our group handled the questioning session rather well. This was partially thanks to Wei Ling, who suggested we try and expect a few questions beforehand, and work on our answers to them.

In conclusion, I felt that our presentation was a good one. The team was unanimously happy with the final proposal and it was good experience, as a complete ‘non-Singaporean’ team, to try and propose a solution to one of Singapore’s gravest problems.