Unit 3 was a very busy three weeks unit as we began the process of researching, organizing and writing our formal report draft and peer review our partner’s report draft. I definitely think this is by far the most challenging unit for me in terms of writing my first draft and reviewing my peer’s report.
Researching for my topic (musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) in the dental office) was an easy task as there were many literature available on-line. Conducting the survey and interview at the office went smoothly as everyone was cooperative and interested in participating. Although my interview with my office manager had great results, I was disappointed that funding for magnifying lenses and chairs was not available to implement the changes in my recommendation.
Once I completed my survey and interview, tabulating and analyzing the result was fairly quick as there were only seven respondents. Drawing in the charts to represent my findings was a bit of a challenge because this is something I was not familiar with. It was very frustrating since the graph illustrations I wanted did not turn out right. After a half an hour of fiddling with my word application, I was able to put all the necessary charts to represent my findings. Organizing my formal report draft would have been a challenge if I did not have an example to follow. Following my formal report outline helped me tremendously in organizing my formal report.
Writing my formal report draft required a lot time and planning, as well writing with the “You Attitude” was challenging as I am not used to the style of writing. Aside from following my outline, the recommendations I received from Silvia’s peer review of my proposal helped me immensely. Overall, I was able to prepare this report without major difficulties.
I think over the last two months, I have gotten better with my writing skill and my peer reviewing ability has greatly improved. Although I found peer reviewing Andrea’s formal report draft a bit challenging I was able to complete it with the help of the Unit 3.3 Checklist for Peer Review of Draft Report. I also found that this assignment took longer in comparison with previous peer review assignments. It could have been the length of the report or simply because I wanted to make sure that I was aligned with the checklist. Overall I was happy with the result of my peer review assignment. I can honestly say that this assignment has honed my critiquing skill as I was able to compare and evaluate both mine and Andrea’s papers.
Although Unit 3 was the most challenging unit thus far, I truly enjoyed researching and writing my report draft. The assignment has given me the opportunity to delve into the ongoing issue that my office has been dealing with. This unit, along with my team mates’ peer reviews and professor’s feedback, has helped improve my technical writing and critical thinking skills.
Lake George at Killarney Provincial Park