Through the study of ENGL301, I have gained a lot this semester. Special thanks to Dr. Erika and my colleague Anna Lucy Han for their suggestions and encouragement of my writing.

At the beginning of the semester, I was very aware that my writing ability was limited, so I especially hoped that I could improve through this semester of study. In writing and revising homework, again and again, I feel that my writing skills have indeed improved to a certain extent, and I also deeply realize that writing is something that requires constant practice and repeated revisions to improve. I think that’s one of my strengths. I’m a very patient person, and I know that I can improve in this area, so I can listen to other people’s advice humbly. During the learning process, I can calm down and read the teacher’s blog and peer-reviewing carefully, and then carefully revise the articles I wrote with a correct writing attitude.

My weakness in English writing is that the writing time is relatively long, and I need to rethink and revise the wording. For example, I need to consider not using negative words as much as possible, reducing the use of pronouns, etc., so it often takes more time to complete the homework. However, I believe that in the following study and work, with my continuous practice, I can definitely solve this problem effectively.

In this semester of study, I completed a variety of writing tasks, including relatively familiar letter writing, writing a resume, etc. On the basis of clear format requirements, I learned more about the tone and wording of writing, this is also practiced when I send emails to the dean of the department, coordinator, etc. this semester. No matter what job position I enter in the future, I think I have the confidence to send an email with goodwill to each other. In these writing tasks, I also have many unfamiliar ones, such as writing memos, peer reviews, etc. This challenged me to expand my knowledge and learn their proper format. I believe learning how to write memos will benefit my career a lot. After all, whether as a computer engineer or as a teacher of computer science, I need to show everyone my ideas and the results of the teaching stage. The writing of memorandums will be indispensable in my work in the future.

Looking back on these short three months, I have undoubtedly learned a lot of practical writing skills that I will apply in my future studies and career. Overall, I really enjoyed my time in this class.

My WebFolio consists of 6 important elements, the home page, personal profile, stage learning feedback, personal resume, application package, and a display of some of my best works. These sections are carefully divided to help organize all my assignments and files.

Designing WebFolio was a joy. In terms of design, users can choose from templates or create their own homepage with personal characteristics. Colours, fonts, and patterns can be edited, providing users with different needs with a variety of choices. I hose a combination of templates and my own creation, so that the layout is clean and tidy, as well as a little bit of my own style.

The design of the homepage is mainly concise and clear. I hope readers can quickly understand the content of my web folio when they see my homepage and can visit the pages of interest in time.

In the first pagination, I encountered a little problem, I didn’t find where to adjust the order of the pages, but fortunately, I managed to solve this problem after I searched carefully!

In the process of making each page break, I try to make it easy for the reader to read and avoid large paragraphs of text. Therefore, how to effectively typeset pictures and text is the most important issue. However, during the design process, I did not find a good way to do it, which was a bit frustrating. Some pages are difficult to incorporate artistic elements beautifully.

In general, I began to think that designing a web folio should not be difficult, but in the implementation process, I found that it takes a lot of time and energy to be concise, beautiful, and professional. Finally, I am very happy and have a sense of accomplishment that I can have such a result to show to everyone. Also, I think in the future no matter whether I will be a user or a developer, the experience of creating my own online platform from scratch is a rare experience.

Research Process of Formal Report Draft

After deciding to study the topic “Recommendations of Expediting FSW-inland applications”, I tried to search for relevant academic papers to collect data and information for writing this report. Unfortunately, this delay is sudden and happens for the first time, so there is no relevant research. Therefore, my data and information sources rely only on news, IRCC official website, and questionnaires, which makes me very worried if the data collection is not enough to convince the target readers. So I started posting links to the survey in more FSW-related social media groups with a catchy message in hopes of getting more responses. The sample size I ended up with was still small, but I still received useful data and I analyzed them and created graphs for some of the questions in the survey.

Organizing Process of Formal Report Draft

The writing of the draft report was more difficult than I thought, but luckily, I had an outline established in my previous assignments, so it helped me to organize my thoughts effectively. However, sometimes my ideas are always difficult to summarize into one title or one subtitle. This is where I need to improve further.

Writing Process of Formal Report Draft

This part was the most challenging process for me. During the writing process, I found that I often struggled to organize the words and my thoughts together, which weeks the fluency of my paper. Although the research and organization process has provided me with a solid foundation for writing the draft report, I still need to be careful in my word choice and maintain a positive tone while writing it concisely and clearly. In the process of writing the article, I found that I was particularly prone to get sidetracked, which caused the problem of unclear topics. Thanks to my classmate Anna for pointing it out in the peer review and providing sincere suggestions.

Peer Review Process

In the peer-review process, I had the opportunity to read Anna’s report on “Improving Gender Disparity in Department of Computer Science in UBC”. This is a very meaningful subject, and the report is written and completed well. Although there are some minor spelling and formatting errors, it’s a high-quality paper. Reading her report made me realize that there are still many details in my format that I haven’t done right, such as the labels of the charts. These are easy to be ignored.

This process was very helpful because by giving feedback on the work of others, I had the opportunity to reflect on my own work. In addition, I received constructive comments from Anna on my draft report to help me improve my writing. Finally, I am grateful for the opportunity to give and receive feedback from my peers, which has been very rewarding.

Enclosure：Expediting FSW applications – Draft

LinkedIn

People nowadays tend to have more interpersonal communication online. Online platforms, such as LinkedIn, YouTube, and so on are typical places where we interconnect with others. Creating personal profiles on the social network in a professional style is not an overnight thing. It takes time and patience. But certain instructions give us a clear path to do it and if we follow them step by step, we’ll find a decent job quickly. This is what I’ve learned in LinkedIn assignment 2:2.

It was my first time creating a personal profile on LinkedIn and thanks to assignment 2:2, I made over 30 connections in a day! I started by searching for my classmates’ names and expanded my network quickly. I like those automatic responses on LinkedIn very much because they are well-prepared and save me time typing everything. I also found the similarities and differences between LinkedIn and some Chinese social platforms, such as WeChat or Sina Weibo. They are all easy to add new people to your network even if you don’t know them but LinkedIn is more job-intended. You rarely see job postings on WeChat or Sina Weibo.

Proposal and Outline

Assignments 2:1 and 2:3 taught me how to prepare a research proposal in an organized way. Although I have been through writing a proposal, it was almost 7 years ago and it was in Chinese! Therefore, I read a lot about the format of the English proposal and what aspects I should focus on. My research topic was well-thought and very suitable for me because I am one of the FSW victims of the delay made by IRCC. I have lots of things to talk about and have many suggestions for IRCC. However, since I’m through this torture right now, I tend to have many bad words used in my proposal and I really appreciate that Dr. Paterson and my teammate pointed it out to me. They reminded me that no matter how mad you are, you should never insult your listeners, especially when you want to give them some advice. We need to be considerate and think in others’ shoes, which is critical in life.

Now I’m a little worried about whether I can achieve the desired result in the end. After all, under my theme, my main research group is applicants, not workers. The data relating to the work content and workload of staff I can obtain is very limited. From now on, I will try to find more information and materials to support my report.

Peer Review Process

In the peer review session, I carefully read the proposal of each teammate. I was surprised by the diversity of topics and their research depth of them. I reviewed my teammate Lucy’s proposal. I was astonished by her concise and organized proposal. I think her work is well-explained I really like her topic. Her topic is about environmental protection and is pragmatic to UBC students. I learned how persuasive adding some numbers in a proposal can be after reading her work.

Through this peer review, I will never forget not to use negative words in the proposal. Thanks to Dr. Paterson and Lucy, I realized that in order to fully reflect the value of my report, as an author, I must maintain an objective and fair attitude in writing, but these negative words have too strong personal feelings, and their presence in this report is very inappropriate.

I’m very grateful to Lucy for reminding me of the length of my article. I didn’t take into account the length of it when determining this topic. Her reminder made me pay more attention to the article’s layout and my focus. We both made minor mistakes this time and before, but we helped each other to correct them. I think this is one of the meanings of peer review – check the omissions and fill the gaps.

In the process of peer review, I learned the importance of paying attention to details, not only the details in spelling but also the details of the content of the article. I must express them clearly so that my readers can correctly understand the content of the article. For example, in Han’s review of Anna, it was mentioned to reduce the verbs in a sentence to make the sentence more concise. I think this is what I need to pay attention to in writing. I’ll strive to be detailed and appropriate in my next writing tasks.

I enjoy the peer review a lot! And this time, our team switched partners in review so that we can read more peoples’ work and learn from it. What a nice idea!

Link to Revised Report Proposal:

Revised Proposal for expediting FSW-inland applications

Link to Peer Review I Received:

Peer Review of Research Proposal – Expediting FSW-inland applications

Writing the first draft of the definition

In lesson 1:3 of the ENGL301 course, I decided to introduce the term Solar Photovoltaic Panel from the science field because Canada has promoted this technology to protect the environment in recent years due to its ability to reduce carbon emissions and restructure of national power companies. I read several materials about the panel and determined how to write a clear definition for audiences. During the writing process, I understood that the three definition types have different functions: parenthetical is the easiest way to explain a term but it’s often too short to make everything clear; sentence definition is clearer than the parenthetical and it’s also concise so it’s very suitable to the verbal explanation; the expanded definition is the most detailed way to explain jargon. It explains as much as possible to the general audience, including methods like comparison, contrast, and figure illustration. I like the figure illustration most because it’s more direct and vivid to understand and always more attractive to readers. Through the writing process, I learned how to write an explanation of one technical term for general audiences. I believe this topic is fairly useful at the workplace and even in daily life. Because except for practicing my writing skills, I learned to think about it for the sake of others, which is very important to get others’ understanding and support. It’s also a critical interpersonal skill.

Peer Review Process

I chose to review my team member Han Li’s work because our topics are in the same field in terms of renewable technologies and environmental science. Reading others’ work is a great opportunity to learn and retrospect since we often can’t notice the small mistakes that we made but others can. Han pointed out that I didn’t put a comma before “and” and I didn’t use the correct tense once. She laughed when I wrote to her that she put an extra space before “which”. Peer review corrects our mistakes and bonds us together. I enjoy this way of learning. Han also suggested that I should add an introduction part and a conclusion, which I totally agree with. These two parts will complete my work and it’s more logical in the organization. All in all, the peer review process improves my writing skills and taught me how to make non-technical readers understand a term.

Revision Process

I was worried that my writing skills when I was writing since English is not my native language. However, my team member supported me a lot and I really appreciated that they gave me lots of positive feedback. Also, their valuable suggestions help me delete unnecessary expressions and focus more on the environmental effects of solar PV panels. The revision process made me understand deeper about the PV panels and improved my writing skills to a great extent because I’ve never revised an article so many times before. I noticed more inappropriate expressions whenever I revise my work and I enjoy this refining process a lot. I believe this assignment strengthened my writing, learning, and interpersonal skills. I look forward to the future tasks in the ENGL301 course.

Revised Definition Link:

Revised Definition Assignment

To: Han Li

From: Carol Li

Date: January 23, 2022

Subject: ENGL 301 – Writing Team Invitation

Hi Han,

My name is Carol and  I’m a third-year computer science student studying in ENGL301 as well, just like you. I’m wondering if you and I could team up and find other professionals to make a group.

I read your bio and application letter. Your academic and work experience is really good. Your international business background plus the work experience in that travel company must help you gain a variety of useful skills in English technical communication since communication with others would be the lead role for an office admin assistant. It makes you a wonderful team member!

As you know, my academic and work experience is mostly related to Chinese literature, translation, and education. I think this is where we can complement each other. My comprehensive background allows me to come up with ideas quickly. Besides, I’m a self-motivated person so I always meet deadlines. I believe my qualities would make me a valuable team member. You won’t regret teaming up with me.

Please let me know if you want to team up with me. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me through my email. I look forward to hearing from you.

Best,

Carol

ENGL301 Carol Li Application Letter

To: Lucy Li

From: Carol Li

Date: January 23, 2022

Subject: ENGL 301 – Writing Team Invitation

Hi Lucy,

I hope you are doing well!

Last semester, we were in the same tutorial group of STAT 203 and we worked together very well. I’m surprised to know that we are in ENGL 301 again! What a coincidence! I’d like to invite you to join my writing team in ENGL 301.

In the past semester, we have had a certain understanding of each other. You and I really clicked the first time we met. We have the same interests and hobbies so we became good friends at the end of our last tutorial. BTW, thank you again for giving me that avocado plant. What a surprising gift! I also appreciate your learning attitude very much – you always challenge yourself to learn more. I’m so glad that we will company each other for a long time since we both major in computer science and pursue the same career path.

In English writing skills, I know that you have a wide range of English vocabulary and good grammar, and I have many ideas and English writing experience. I believe if we group, we will gain amazing achievements in ENGL 301.

If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know through my email.

Cheers,

Carol

ENGL301 Carol Li Application Letter

To: Anna Li

From: Carol Li

Date: January 23, 2022

Subject: ENGL 301 – Writing Team Invitation

Hi Anna,

My name is Carol. I’m a third-year computer science student like you and I’m in ENGL301 as well. I’m writing to ask if  I could join your writing team since you are the first person that I want to reach out to.

I read your bio and application letter, and I found that we have lots of commons in academic direction, for example, we are both in the BCS program now and we all have profound experience in the education field.

Besides, since English is not my native language either, I think our strengths and weaknesses in English skills can be complementary to each other, which is also a great reason for us to make a team! I believe that we can not only learn from each other in English technical communication but also make great progress in future professional classes.

If by any chance you’d like to team up with me, please contact me through my email. I look forward to hearing from you.

Best,

Carol

ENGL301 Carol Li Application Letter

To:     Dr. Erika Paterson, instructor of English 301 99C

From:   Carol Li, English 301 99C Student

Date:    January 20th, 2022

Subject:  Summary of Application Letter

Please note that my application letter has been posted on my student blog under the BlOG section as instructed on the assignment.

My application letter includes:

1. My interest in joining a professional writing team.
2. I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Chinese Literature and now working on the 2nd degree in Computer Science.
3. My previous work experiences as a Chinese Instructor and Chinese to English Translator.
4. A list of both my strengths and weakness in terms of writing skills and work habits.
5. My personal trait is self-motive and “live and learn” is my learning philosophy.

Please let me know if you have any questions! Thank you!

Enclosure: ENGL301 Carol Li Application Letter

7435 Vista Cres

Burnaby, BC V5E 2C9

January 20, 2022

ENGL 301 99C Class

UBC Department of English

1837 E Mall #397

Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1

Subject: Application to Join Your Professional Writing Team

Dear ENGL 301 peers,

My name is Carol, a third-year student in the UBC BCS program. I am excited to share my experience and writing skills. Please consider me as a member of your English group!

I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Chinese Literature in 2015 and then worked as a Chinese Instructor for four years. As an instructor, I communicated with students and parents, recorded each child’s progress praised them, and gave suggestions to help form good habits. Coordinating the schedule with other instructors and communicating with school leaders to gain their support is part of my job as well. My skills in shorthand and teamwork gained in this experience prepare me to advance in technical writing.

I’m a part-time Chinese to English Translator now. Translating English into Chinese and vice versa is amazing because you will understand how beautiful the languages are and how powerful they can be. I manage to balance my study, work, and personal life. Being excellent in scheduling and aware of deadlines are critical in teamwork.

I’m also a self-motivated person. Since I found my interest in computer science, I began to learn it all by myself. My learning philosophy is “live and learn”, and it’s never too late to start.

Below is a list of my strength and weakness in writing skills and work habits:

Please feel free to contact me at carol20@student.ubc.ca, I look forward to hearing from you!

Best,

Carol

ENGL301 Carol Li Application Letter