Unit 3 Reflection Blog

In this unit, I learnt about the YOU-attitude, drafted my formal report and gave a peer review to my teammate, Mandy Su, for her formal report draft. My report topic was about the education of software in an e-commerce company. Unit 3 felt longer than it was, but it was also more rewarding looking back at what I have done.

The process of researching

Since I am currently doing an internship in one of the e-commerce companies in Hong Kong, I had a chance to know more about the flow of how things work in this business which is technology driven. The research process was quite hectic. I had to do a survey for the normal colleagues and also interview with three different managers.

E-commerce industry is one of the leading directions that the world is going towards. Covid-19 has disrupted a lot of businesses in the world, but not our company. Number of orders kept increasing, returning customers were bringing more revenue to our company which made most of our staff very busy dealing with the “new normal”. Therefore, I was not able to interview with the managers at the original time. I had to reschedule a few times in order to interview with them, usually the interview took place during lunch time or in the evening after I was off duty.

The process of asking colleagues completing the survey was very easy. Most of the staff members were very friendly. I tried to find people from different departments to complete the survey. They completed very quickly and was very respectful to me even though I have not met them before. It made the process of collecting data way easier.

The process of organizing and writing my formal report

After extracting the information, I had to organize my data and present them with graphics. I used Google Form for the survey, so most of the graphics had been drawn by the system. For the interview questions, I also had to organize them by grouping similar response and present them in the report.

The process of writing my formal report was long. I always had to think how many references I have to give, and how to address the issue better. Also, I took a long time debating whether I should present the data in the data section or in the appendix. Since I need data to support my argument and propose a solution but showing them all is not feasible in the data section as the report would be too detailed. At last, I decided to put most of the graphics in the data section, as well as some of the interview questions that speak to the graphics. For the others, I will put them in the Appendix as a reference.

Peer Review Process

The peer review process was very rewarding, I enjoyed reading Mandy’s report. She had a really great flow of showing the current problem first, then the preference of her interviewee in three different dimensions, then propose three different solutions for each problem. I would like to do the same in my report as the flow would support my argument stronger.

In this peer review process, I have also applied the YOU-attitude. I felt great writing in this way because not only could I apply what I have learnt at the beginning of this unit to the real life, but also the respect that I imagine my reader had when I was reading. I think the YOU-attitude is my biggest getaway from this unit and would affect how I give feedback to others in the future.

301 Alison Ma Formal Report Draft

The assignments that I accomplished in Unit 2 include LinkedIn Profile set up and Formal Report Proposal Outline.

Generally speaking, the assignments are not difficult to finish, but the process requires detailed planning and logical thinking. I enjoyed doing both projects.

The LinkedIn Profile setup was very interesting. Before completing this assignment, I have set up a LinkedIn Profile already, but I never realized that LinkedIn had far more functional purposes than I could have expected while doing the research on how to best use this professional social media. One of the most impressive tips is to like, comment and share some insights to your connection to let them know that I am actively trying to connect with my network. This will also increase the likelihood of my profile getting higher exposure to potential employers.

The LinkedIn peer review assignment was also very beneficial to me. My partner gave me helpful suggestions from an audience’s perspective so she could tell which part was confusing. For example, she mentioned that I had to clarify about my degree description after transferring my degree and improve on the tone to strengthen the professional manner.

The Formal Report Proposal requires a longer process to brainstorm. The flexibility of doing a research topic with my choice of interest is a motivation to do a long-term study. The process of deciding a topic was quick. It is happening at my workplace where I am having my placement, and that is what I am interested in. I received an email from Dr. Paterson. She showed her concern to me that my research topic was a great one but might be out of time for academic investigation.

After the peer review process, I have learnt that my writing skills is not professional enough for workplace yet. I looked at my partner’s profile and realized she had better description for education on LinkedIn: she transferred her major like I did and highlighted some courses as well as her active involvement at school. This provided me a direction and helped improve my overall LinkedIn outlook.

The peer review process impacted me to think more from the target audience’s perspective. For example, reading my LinkedIn from a student’s perspective is different from that of an employer actively looking for a new colleague. Sometimes I overlooked the importance of highlighting my experience from a professional manner and wrote from my own descriptive perspective. This assignment reminded me to always define my target audience clear.

Peer Review for my LinkedIn Profile (from Kathryn Simone)

Formal Report Outline (Revised)

Original Writing

The technical term that I chose for this assignment is Purchasing Power Parity. I chose the target audience to be non-technical because explaining the economic concept is similar to explaining to readers with little or no professional background in the related field. Also, I could practice how to polish my technical writing skills to make my work understandable and appealing to the readers.

The textbook was a useful source for me to study how to explain the technical term in a parenthetical, a sentence and an expanded format. Furthermore, I found that the expanded format was the most interesting part to me because it allowed me to further understand the concept of this term that I did not realize before. The expanded definition also allowed more space for me to illustrate the meaning of the technical term, which makes the audience easier to grasp the main point.

Review Process

The review process was very useful. While reviewing my partner, Sydney’s definition of her technical term, Hydrocephalus, I could self-examine whether I have done the same thing that I found useful in her assignment, as well as whether I have made the same mistakes I found in her explanation.

For example, I found that she is really skilled at using technical terms that are common in her professional field. While suggesting her to either change the target audience to a skilled and more technical group, I have also examined again whether I used highly technical words in my assignment as well.

All in all, I enjoyed reading her definition because not only had I become more familiar with the impact of Hydrocephalus on a young child’s cerebral development, but also I gained a lot of insights from reading Sydney’s work, both in a good way and to-be-improved way.

Editing Process

Sydney has given me a very detailed peer review report about my strength and weaknesses in this assignment. I have read through her report and my work again. I realized that there were some parts there were ambiguous in the reader’s perspective. For example, I did not state clearly what is “Big Mac Index” in my parenthetical definition; I performed the same mistake as Sydney that I used technical terms in my work and did not realize that my non-technical readers would not understand the meaning of the term. Before handing in my assignment, I read through my work again to make sure there are no undefined highly technical terms.

Sydney’s suggestions are more about the technique of my writing, such as grammatical mistakes and citations. While making the amendments according to her comments, I would read more journals and opinions on the news in my related field in order to learn the writing approach of explaining highly technical concepts, as well as to learn how to write with the right tone and grammar.

Revised definition document: My Revised Technical Definition – Purchasing Power Parity

My review to Sydney: My Peer Review Link for Sydney

Peer review from Sydney: Peer Review Link from Sydney

Hi Kathryn,

Nice to meet you! I am one of your classmates in ENGL 301 in Summer 2020. After reading your application letter, I am impressed with your determination to hone up your technical writing skills. I am writing to invite you to join my professional writing team.

Your technical and practical understanding from your previous degree and work experience have stood you out from the other candidates. I share the same concern with you in terms of writing style. I hope that through this course, I am able to improve my conciseness in diction where readers understand my key message, while you wish to develop strategies to improve writing and communication ability in this course. I believe that your analytical skills would allow you to provide technical and reasonable feedback to brush up our team’s overall performance.

Attached please find my application letter. Please kindly reply to this email to let me know your decision upon reading the letter. I am very excited to be in a team with you. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Kind Regards,
Alison

Hi Jie,

Nice to meet you! I am one of your classmates in ENGL 301 in Summer 2020. I am a fourth-year student studying International Economics at UBC. After reading your application letter, I am impressed with your ability in your past working experience as well as your learning attitude. I am writing to invite you to be a member of my professional writing team.

I like the way you take your study seriously. This really speaks out to me as I also have a sense of responsibility in my study and work. Your generosity in helping your classmates to solve blog-related problems on the CHAT page stands you out from a lot of other candidates. From my previous co-op placement, while my performance in a result-driven environment is evaluated, the team’s feedback and support are also essential to my output. I believe you are one of the few candidates that will provide useful suggestions based on your rich experience from your previous workplace and coursework at UBC.

Please see attached application letter. Please kindly let me know your decision after reading the letter. I am very excited to be in a team with you. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Kind Regards,
Alison

Hi Sydney,

Nice to meet you! I am one of your classmates in ENGL 301 this Summer. After reading your application letter, I am writing to invite you to join my professional writing team. Your international exposure in twenty-six countries and your professional and ethical communication skills from your previous work experience stand you out from other students.

I am most impressed with your exposure to global experience in Canada and Australia while maintaining a professional and dedicated attitude to your study. I think this is important for self-discipline. I personally take pride in my time management, so I think we both have the same discipline for managing our work properly.

I am also impressed with your language ability. You mentioned that you could speak fluent English, Portuguese and intermediate Spanish. I think your exposure to different languages would make you more familiar with the respective language structure, which helps to build your sensitivity to different writing contexts and diction.  Your exceptional ability would be able to give concrete and useful advice to our team for improvement in technical writing.

Please see attached application letter. Please kindly let me know your decision after reading the letter. I am very excited to be in a team with you. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Kind Regards,

Alison

To: Dr. Erika Paterson, Professor of ENGL 301 98A
From: Alison Ma
Date: May 22, 2020
Subject: Posting of Application Letter

After reading the instructions on ENGL 301’s class blog, I am writing to inform you that I have posted my application letter along with an attached word document on my student blog.

My application letter includes the following points:

• Skillsets from my Economics degree
• Professional Interest
• Technical writing experience from previous placements 
• My weakness in writing 
• My learning philosophy

Thank you for your detailed guidance in arranging this online course. I am looking forward to collaborating with my professional writing team for the rest of the term. Should there be any adjustment or feedback, please let me know.

Sincerely yours,

Alison

301 Alison Ma – Application Letter

5960 Student Union Blvd
Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z1

May 20, 2020

ENGL 301 98A – Technical Writing
University of British Columbia
2329 West Mall
Vancouver, B.C., V6T 1Z4

Dear Classmates in ENGL 301,

Please consider my application for a position in your writing team as posted on Lesson 1:2 Assignment Instruction Page for ENGL 301 98A. Having written for public associations from my co-op placement in combination of my coursework in the Bachelor of International Economics degree, I am passionate to give concrete feedback and reflect on peer’s work.

As an Economics student, I am proficient in presenting abstract ideas to concrete and organized explanations. In my free time, I enjoy reading newspaper to understand macroeconomic trends and giving useful suggestions to resolve economic problems. In my team projects at school, I have developed excellent communication and time management skills. I take my work seriously because I understand my performance will directly influence my team’s output.

I am admitted to Arts and Business Co-op program. This exceptional exposure allows me to practice writing in different professional fields. My co-op experience at ADP Financial Ltd. and the Alzheimer Society of B.C. provided me audience-focused and precise writing skills, as well as to explore different styles of writing, such as Email and newsletter etc.

A weakness of my writing is conciseness. Sometimes I find myself repeating the same idea with unnecessary explanations. While my goal in this course is to learn writing in the right tone with the right diction, what I have been doing to improve this is to read a variety of materials and start early on my assignment to allow more time for proofreading and editing. This also speaks out to my learning philosophy, which is to learn through understanding. Defining the target audience, the purpose and the context of each writing assignment are key to a good piece of writing.

These accomplishments would make me an outstanding asset to your professional writing team. Thank you very much for your time to review my application. I would appreciate to be considered a member in your team. Please contact me at alisonma@alumni.ubc.ca. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours Sincerely,

Alison Ma

301 Alison Ma – Application Letter