For this unit, I have worked on many interesting tasks. The unit started with writing with the right attitude no matter what the situation. Through writing a feedback letter to a student with an unprofessional attitude, and reading the peer review from my partner, I have identified a few weaknesses in my writing. For example, I was slightly outraged by the example email of Evan Crisp for the lack of “you attitude” he demonstrated in his writing. Although I tried very hard to write with the “you attitude” in mind while providing feedback for Evan, I noticed that I might have came across harsh in a couple of places. I need to constantly be aware of my readers and stay in tune with their feelings so I can always write with the best attitude.

Another assignment of this unit is regarding writing the draft for the formal report. Through this assignment, I learned the importance of time management. I worked very hard to plan out the schedules for conducting the surveys and formulating the data analysis along with the first draft of my report. In the past, I was a procrastinator with a habit of rushing things for completion at the last minute. I purposely wanted to overcome my weakness of poor time management by planning out this task in weekly iterations. Every week, I would have a certain set of major tasks to complete, which breaks down to smaller tasks I can work on throughout the weekdays. It was very satisfying to see that for this task, I wasn’t rushed at the last minute as I overcame my major struggle with time management. I wouldn’t have managed my time so well without the outline of the final report that our instructor has asked us to write for one of the earlier assignments.

Something I learned through working on collecting primary data for my report was the importance of taking initiative. This past week, my client, Ms. Rombu was sick and cannot make it to her pottery class. However, I planned to complete the survey by my scheduled date so I contacted the substitute instructor in advance to plan out the process of conducting a survey right between classes. I am a bit shy talking to strangers, but for the purpose of collecting good primary data, I introduced myself to many people that I haven’t met before and asked them for help in participating in my research. Most people I interacted with were very friendly, and I enjoyed the socializing aspects of this assignment. By taking initiative, I felt in control of my assignment, my progress and my life.

Last but not least, providing peer review for Luke’s final report was a great learning experience. I have a lot of respect for Luke in choosing a challenging topic for his final report. Through reading his paper, I have learned a lot of technical knowledge about automated testing. Some of the recommendations I suggested to Luke, which I also need to work on myself, are regarding explaining concepts clearly. For example, Luke explained a lot of technical terms in his definitions section. However, there were terms such as “sanity test” that were not explained previously. Although a well-experienced engineer could easily understood these terms, but fresh new graduates and junior engineers might misinterpret their meaning and significance.

Overall, unit three was a very challenging unit. I will remember to use the “you attitude” throughout my writing career. I will continue to improve on my peer review skills and look forward to the next unit of this exciting course.