Unit 2 for ENGL 301  has been quite a lot of work to be honest. I have taken a few online courses and each time I feel that the amount of workload is heavier than in-class courses. Be that as it may this unit had some interesting assignments.

This unit was comprised of completing a Formal Report proposal, a peer review of a Formal Report proposal, setting up a LinkedIn Profile, completing Formal Report Outline, and submitting a progress report regarding our report. The proposal assignment was the most intriguing part of this Unit in my personal opinion. I think that it is really important and also a great skill to be able to write a good proposal especially if you want to get grants for research or if you are pitching a business plan. It was great to learn how to properly structure a proposal and to always consider who your audience is. Truthfully, completing the peer review for this unit was very difficult for me. My partner didn’t post their proposal until a day after the peer review was due and didn’t provide any heads-up on the matter until I emailed them the day the peer review was due. I hate losing marks unnecessarily especially in English courses since I do not do that well but I guess the onus was on me to contact them earlier as to why they had not submitted their proposal on time. However we are all post-secondary students at the University of British Columbia and it goes a long way, not just now but later on in life to respect your peers and colleagues. Anyways, I found setting up a LinkedIn Profile to be the most enjoyable assignment in ENGL 301 to date. It was encouraging to see past accomplishments and work history laid out on a profile page that prospective companies can check out. I still need to get a professional taken photograph of myself to put on my LinkedIn Profile but it needs to be cheap. Maybe I can find a friend who will help me…

Overall this unit showed me something new, how to write a proposal, something I do not like, handing assignments in late, and something I need to improve, polishing up my LinkedIn Profile. It has been a lot of work so far but there are only two more units remaining, let’s go!

My LinkedIn Profile can be accessed here

ENGL 301 Report Proposal

Peer Review of Proposal for Taj Tatla

TO: Dr. Erika Paterson

FROM: Samuel King

DATE: February 22, 2016

SUBJECT: Progress Report for Formal Report

The following is an update regarding my formal report. I have attached 2 documents at the bottom of this post

1. Survey Questionnaire
2. Interview Questions

Audience for my report:

City of Vancouver and Translink representatives in charge of public restrooms at or around train stations in Vancouver.

Purpose: 

To determine on whether public restrooms can be installed at or around train stations and gauging public interest/demand.

Significance:

The lack of public restrooms in the City of Vancouver is alarming. Even more so is that public transit train stations in Vancouver do not even have them. Citizens and visitors are left with finding a store that will allow them to use restrooms usually at the cost of purchasing something. Adding public restrooms to train stations will help eleviate stress while travelling across the City of Vancouver.

Schedule:

• Feb.29-Hand out surveys at City Hall Canada Line Station
• Mar. 4-Phone Interview City of Vancouver & Translink representative
• Mar. 10-Finish first draft of formal report
• Mar. 14-Complete peer review for a group member’s final report
• Mar. 15-Look over feedback from peer review of my own formal report
• Mar.18-Start writing formal report
• Apr.8-Submit formal report

If you have any comments, concerns or suggestions please feel free to leave a comment below.

2-3 Survey Questionnaire for Gauging Interest of Restrooms at Train Stations in Vancouver

2-3 Interview Questions for Translink & City of Vancouver Representative

MEMORANDUM

To: Dr.Erika Paterson
From: Samuel King
Date: February 3rd, 2016
Subject: Formal Report Proposal

I have attached to this memo a document of my formal report to determine the demand for a installing lavatory facilities at Translink train stations throughout the City of Vancouver.

The attached formal report proposal includes:

• An introduction to the problem of a lack of train station restrooms in Vancouver
• An overview of the problem along with a proposed solution
• Issues that I will address in the formal report
• My qualifications for attempting to resolve this problem

I would very much like to hear your feedback and suggestions regarding this formal report proposal. Please let me know if you require any more details. Thank you for your time.

Enclosure: Proposal for formal report

Formal Report Proposal

The first unit of ENGL 301 has been tough but it has also given me a valuable opportunity to practice my technical writing skills. I joined the class very close to Add/Drop registration deadline of January.18th, 2016, so there was quite a lot of catch up for me to complete. This introductory unit was comprised of, but not limited to, setting up a UBC personal blog page that contains a home page for ENGL 301, a biography page and a blog posting page. We were also tasked with forming a writing team, defining a complex term from our field of study and then peer reviewing one of writing members definitions. For the peer review assignment I was paired with Taj Tatla.

I found that the peer review process was quite challenging as I have not done one before. This assignment was difficult for the fact that we had to analyze, compliment and give constructive feedback on our partners definition assignment. It took longer than I originally envisioned because it required attention to detail and careful choice of words so as to not come across as being negative. That being said, I think it was a great chance to catch a glimpse of the fascinating subjects my peers are studying.

The peer review report that I received from Taj was informative as it identified my weaknesses and oversights in the definition assignment.  At the same time, Taj gave me some very encouraging compliments that helped boost my confidence when revising my Cartography definition. I have definitely developed an appreciation for the peer review process after this assignment and I now see the benefit in having a colleague look over my work.

To view my Cartography definition please click here

To view my Peer Review please click here