Below is a brief reflection of my experience for Unit 3.
Formal Report Progress:
Fortunately, I selected a topic narrow enough to be manageable. There is enough information available within the UBC course registration website, as well as past class records from UBC pair.
Little did I know, however, that the scope was larger than anticipated. I narrowed my scope further to limit, narrow, and specify the number of courses required to examine. This way, the scope was more manageable despite a short completion timeframe.
The most challenging part of the report, so far, is gathering enough participants for the online survey. This is especially true when there isn’t any enticement or compensation for participants taking their time and energy to complete the survey. The chances of gaining several dozen participants would be unlikely. Instead, I focused on quality over quantity: my survey questions placed more focus on subjective responses, rather than large-scale statistical figures.
Formal Report Peer Review: Template
I took the strengths of the previous peer review template for LinkedIn pages and applied them to this one. I took note of certain guidelines provided from Lesson 3:3 and added them as checklists in order to better communicate my evaluation.
Formal Report Peer Review
This peer review is different; it allows us to analyze a work-in-progress instead of a finished work. This way, we are also able to consider and suggest which direction the report should progress.
It also gives us a glimpse into the various elements of technical writing that are present and/or required within the drafts. For example, I’ve noticed plenty of other students requiring a way to communicate the addressed problems in their reports as “bad news” – while having to write with “YOU Attitude”.
Nevertheless, my approach was highly organized and the process felt significantly more efficient.
Overall:
This unit placed a great emphasis on content management and organization, as well as prioritizing key elements in a report draft. I’ve had past follies of taking ambitious projects while also underestimating the cost of their efforts (time and money) and overestimating their necessary components. This time, I’ve learned to approach it differently and pursue what is feasible, but still essential, to the project. I also feel like I’ve improved my writing efficiency by staying focused on the key points of whatever I’m writing about. I feel more than capable of tackling the remainder of the course, as well as any future writing projects to come.
My Formal Report Draft: