Blog Post #7

This module has added more dimensions to my initial perception of appealing communication.

Active listening used to be my main concern. However, active listening doesn’t simply refer to lending a listening ear. There are more factors. One of which is social-cultural barrier. Being in this module, especially this class, is the best I could have hoped for. The mixture of classmates of different nationalities and backgrounds has aided the progress of my conversation skills. Through the interactions with my peers during lessons as well as outside of class, I was able to appreciate the meaning of intercultural communication.

There is more than one type of communication. I’ve split them into 2 main categories for ease of understanding: formal and informal. Informal refers to our daily interactions with our family, friends or even acquaintances. It’s like wearing different masks when faced with different people. This falls under awareness of the target audience. I’m sure everyone is doing that subconsciously, just that this term isn’t coined officially. On the other hand, how one presents oneself during an interview, a meeting or a presentation is then the formal part of communication. Here, the masks I put on diverge much more from my personality. Circumstances of such formal interactions dictates this need, we don’t have a choice. The lesson I’ve picked up from this module is that for any formal interaction (even for informal ones), everyone needs confidence regardless of the role one plays. It would be best if one is already assured of one’s worth. If not, we can rely on false bravado. Practise in the mirror daily if you have to, confidence has to ooze out from you.

There are much more which I have learnt, but the above are the more interesting messages that I want to share. Au revoir, ES 2007S! Bye to the fun and laughter we shared. Bye to the friends I’ve made (Miss Kim, I meant you too!). Bye...

Blog Post #6

My interest in chemistry from a young age finds myself currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at National University of Singapore. In my college days, I was offered to participate in the Chemistry Olympiad programme in recognition of my results in the subject.

Besides striving for excellence in my studies, I cultivate my non-academic skills through various activities. Being a president of the Computer Club in my secondary school and vice-chairperson of the Mathematical Society in my junior college had honed my leadership skills and cultivated my interpersonal skills.

My responsible nature has brought about my school teachers’ trust in me when I was assigned various posts such as class monitor and subject representative during my pre-undergraduate days.

Blog Post #5

Everyone has their own way of handling things, thus there will be times when ideas clash. Whether a group makes or breaks depends on how the members handle the differences among themselves. Fortunately for my group, we do not have much problem in this area. The differences serve to enhance the scope of our project instead. Effective communication comes into play during moments of misunderstanding, not only from the speaker, but also from the listeners. Ineffective communication of ideas lead to time wastage from explanation on one’s part and the redoing of a particular portion of the project.

For the whole thing to work, it is more of give-and-take, rather than equal distribution of workload. As a team player, we should understand each member’s difficulty and do our part to relieve the worries of the other members. For example, one can offer to do more of a certain part of the project if the others were busy at that period instead of insisting equal division of the project. This not only improves the relationship among the members, but also ensures that that portion of the project is handled as best it could be.

The primary portion of the research (for our case, it was the surveying of NUS undergraduates) has to be performed with care. My group attempted to obtain our findings through surveying NUS undergraduates. From the feedback from our friends who were not involved in the project, we realised there were ambiguities in the surveys. The ideas we tried to convey were apparently lost through the process of scripting the questionnaire. This caused some uncertainty when we tried to interpret and analyse the results. We were vacillating between the alternatives that arose due to the language issue present in the survey and the original notion we had behind the survey questions.

Blog Post #4

I learnt something new that holiday.

I visited a cousin in Australia. It was through that trip that I realised there are different culture norms and values. When paying for our merchandise which cost $14.85, I gave the cashier $15 initially and then thought to relieve the amount of coins in my purse by volunteering to pay 85 cents. My cousin stopped me immediately and explained a moment later that Australians are not as proficient as Singaporeans in the area of mental calculations. I would receive 85 cents plus 15 cents instead of the dollar I expected if I were to do as I had planned. Imagine my surprise over that!

A while later, after a sumptuous meal at a restaurant, my cousin left the change with the waitress. Being conscious on the issue of money, I was indignant over it and questioned her move for in Singapore, we do not advocate giving gratuity. Unsurprisingly, it was another culture norm which I almost trespassed if not for her. Tipping waiters or waitresses is a customary act in Australia no matter which restaurant you are in. It may also explain why waitressing is not viewed as a second-rate job over in Australia like it is locally.

In order to communicate effectively, not only do we have to overcome the language barrier, but we also have to understand and accept the culture norms of the ones whom we are talking to. This is a form of basic courtesy we can give when we are interacting with others. Fortunately, my cousin was with me that trip. If not, who knows how many people I would have offended that holiday.

Blog Post #3

“Hey, wo men yao qu Megabytes for lunch, you coming?”

Does this sound familiar? Maybe this is one line you frequently use or hear from others? Welcome to the club! You would not be the first or the last to be caught using Singlish.

I’m not condemning the use of this language. To me, its alright to speak Singlish as long as you can switch from Singlish to English readily. However, more often than not, most people stumble when forced into a dialogue that involves only English.

One may then question the significance of conversing strictly in English. No doubt, Singlish brings Singaporeans of different race, age, gender and religion together. If not for the puzzled expressions of non-Singaporeans when we converse in this language, I would give my full support to the language. Singlish removes a level of formality among people, but this is not what we seek in a workplace or in an interview. Moreover, when English is the passport to the global economy and Singapore aims to develop herself as one of the key players in the international market, we have to reconsider our stand on Singlish.

There is a need to encourage speaking proper English among Singaporeans. Current campaigns (Speak Good English Campaign) are unsuccessful in their attempts to inculcate the importance of being polished English speakers. With this survey, we hope not to repeat their mistakes and to succeed where they failed. To do so, we have to first investigate how deeply locals feel about both languages. Our target group is NUS students. We can then assemble the methods which encourage the use of English and reduce the students’ reliance on Singlish. The surveys will help to determine the feasibility of the methods suggested. The purport is to create a new generation of undergraduates who can speak both languages fluently and interchange the use of either readily. With these, I conclude this blog with “How do NUS students feel about their daily usage of Singlish? What are the measures that can be implemented so that they are eloquent speakers of the English Language yet glib Singlish conversationalists?”

Blog Post #2

Half a year in the same working environment forged a deep friendship among the six of us. We met up regularly after the job attachment. Celebrating Christmas together was one of the highlights of that year. Different backgrounds meant different ways of celebrating the holiday. Poor Sean and Joshua thought celebration meant a movie and a meal together, while the rest of us awaited the exchange of presents eagerly. D-day came when both of them turned up empty-handed and two hours late! Tardiness was one thing that Jane and I abhorred. We kept our anger to ourselves so as not to spoil the festive mood, but our smiles had lost its original intensity. The bomb exploded when revelation time came!

If the day had started out better, there wouldn’t be such a big quarrel. I suppose the unabashed attitude of Sean played a part as well. He wasn’t apologetic for being late and forgetting the gifts. To make matters worse, he was picky about the gifts he received. May was very upset. She put in much effort in preparing her gifts. This was the spark that brought the outburst. Jane chided Sean for the blunders he made and included Joshua in her rantings. Sean remained unrepentant – as was his usual way of handling others’ dissatisfaction of him. Joshua’s expression spoke of remorse, while Peter’s reflected unease and awkwardness. May’s eyes were glistening from hurt. I tried to be the peacemaker: pointing out Sean’s mistakes while pacifying Jane. The day ended badly. Till this day, there’s a rift between Sean and Jane though the rest of us are on talking terms. Would it have turned out differently if the six of us handled that day with other approaches?

Blog Post #1

I want to communicate appealingly.

Loss of eye contact, disinterest reflected from the eyes, subtle grimace in their facial expressions, repeats of “sorry, I lost you,”, these are signs of waning interest in my conversation. Some of these knaves are best friends, close buddies and family members. It almost became acceptable. This is wrong! Though everyone has this moment once or twice in a while, this is not a satisfactory excuse. The fault may lie with the issue being discussed, but my bet is on the style of communicating.

My interpretation of conversation changes at different stages of my life with the accumulation of experiences. Until recently, it finally hit me that a conversation only works when there is listening by all parties involved. Listening, not just hearing. In every conversation I had, my topic is always of utmost importance. I’m still struggling to change this vile habit.Let me just be selfish once more and expound on my theory of the art of conversing. (I do feel like a professional now.) There is homework to do. The likes and dislikes, the “current affairs” of mutual friends (Celebrities included.) and of that friend whom we are chatting to, these facts must be at our fingertips. What happens if we face a stranger? There is no taboo topic. However, a neutral stand is required. We don’t want to offend. For non-supporters of utmost diplomacy can pursue the less rigorous version – convincing instead of enforcing. Choice of words and tone affects the pleasure one gets from a conversation. Our goal is to ensure that there is a second conversation, unless yours is otherwise. There is definitely more that these to an appealing conversation; I’m still searching.