As I reflect on my progress throughout this course, I can honestly say that I am pleased with the work that I have completed. At the beginning of ENG 301, I can honestly say that I felt intimidated by the course load. I thought that it would be too much, especially because I don’t have much social media and computer tech experience. I thought I wouldn’t be able to complete all of the work on time, especially the research for the formal report. Starting with the blog site creation, which I had some difficulty navigating through initially. When I took the time to learn more about creating the site, I felt more confident with posting, and communicating with my team. I would say that was my most favourite part of this course, connecting with other students and creating a team forum, ‘Team Typephoon’, it has been wonderful working with my peers and team members. I can reflect on the course now, and realize that this is definitely where the future is heading. As we gain more technological knowledge, it will be more efficient to communicate in business and professional relations. I am glad I took this course because now I am equipped and up to date with these technical communication skills.
Web Folio Creation
Unit 4:3 guided me through the creation of a website and web folio. I was able to update my blog site and create a web folio that is composed of all of the work that I have completed this semestre. In this web folio, I have included a collection of my best work, my application package, resume, LinkedIn profile, and reflection blog posts. A web folio is a site that highlights all professional work, and it is a good resource for future employers to have access to this work. It is also helpful when connecting with other professionals.
At first, I was a bit intimidated about creating a website, I had no idea as to how I was going to go about this project. When I found out that I could update the blog site that I created at the beginning of the semestre, I was more keen about completing the task. I am not well-versed on technological aspects of website creation, and blogging. I have learned a lot through taking ENG 301, after all this is an online course, and it’s all about technical communications. I feel much more confident now about creating websites, and navigating through social media platforms. I am pleased with my progress and with the work that I have produced throughout this course.
When my web folio was complete, I was satisfied with the work that I had put into this project, I thought it turned out great! My favourite section is the collection of best work section, I think it really highlights all of the projects and it was nice to look back and reflect on my progress. Thank you for visiting this website and for reading my work.
Unit 3:3 Reflection Blog
As I reflect on this past unit, I am glad to review my progress, and to realize that it was worthwhile putting the effort that I did over the past few weeks. This unit was particularly full of major components and assignments worth a big portion of the course mark this semestre. I learned all about putting together a research proposal, draft, and writing professional letters. A lot of brainstorming went into deciding on a topic to research at my place of work. This was tricky because the research had to be measurable, anonymous, and keeping in mind working within an ethical research framework.
Our team at work recently had a presentation regarding infection control and best practices to reduce aerosol bacteria in our working environment. This topic was eyeopening and very intriguing. Since this was a new protocol introduced by management, this provided me with an idea for my formal report project. I decided to research the use of an antibacterial mouth-rinse prior to ultrasonic scaling, and to help determine if the dental hygiene team at work would think it was a great addition to our daily practice, or if they perceived this new protocol to not be beneficial. This was an interesting topic to research, and I really enjoyed working on this project. Overall, I enjoy doing research, and creating reports, however; I hadn’t had the opportunity to work through the steps of creating a formal report in this manner before. It was a good learning experience.
The formal report draft peer-review provided by my team mate, Usman Zahoor, gave me wonderful insight on my work so far. His review of my formal report draft was very positive, and gave me great tips on how to improve my report. I will definitely apply these recommendations prior to my final report submission. I will consult with my team some time soon to receive some help with the MLA style of referencing, as this is one of my biggest set-backs in writing reports, I have managed to produce good work using the Vancouver style in the past, but I definitely need more practice with MLA. I will try to improve my referencing technique.
2:3 Reflection Blog
Unit 2 included working on memorandums to peers and instructor, I think that I have improved in this area. I have been able to summarize the information as it pertains to my work in a memo. Writing these professional memos has helped me develop the skills necessary when communicating with other professionals in throughout this course. I have also been able to review my peers memos and these have prompted me to review their work during the course.
In this unit I have followed the steps necessary in the creation of a LinkedIn profile. The research on methods and best practices for creating a LinkedIn profile was extremely helpful, since I didn’t have an account on LinkedIn. I found this process to be easy to follow, I have learned about the benefits of having a LinkedIn account. I now understand how beneficial this networking platform can be in employment search, and to connect with other professionals. The peer review process for this unit was helpful, I appreciated having my peer’s, Adrienne Yap, feedback on my LinkedIn profile. The peer review offered me the points that I needed to improve my profile page on LinkedIn.
In this unit I really enjoyed working on my formal report proposal, before commencing, I had no idea of what I could research for this assignment. Along the way, I found that the topic that I chose is important for the work that I do and it will greatly benefit my team in the long run. I have recently worked on the outline for my report, I am excited to move forward with the research. I have never worked on report proposals, so this is a great learning method on professional report proposal writing. It was great to receive feedback from my peer, Usman Zahoor, on my report proposal. Usman provided areas that I could improve on while putting together the proposal, and I was able to use his peer review of my work to improve my proposal. I have revised my report proposal, this is a great baseline to draw from in order to work on the report.
https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-99a-2019wa/2019/10/16/peer-review-of-formal-report-proposal/
Assignment 1:3 Reflection
ENG 301 Assignment 1:3 Reflection Blog Post
Assignment 1:3 Revised Post: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-99a-2019wa/2019/09/30/assignment-13-revised-post/
Link to peer review post: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-99a-2019wa/2019/09/27/peer-review-of-definition-tonsillolith/
Reflecting on this assignment, I have learned a lot about defining complex terms in three different ways. I often read articles and other sources of information for work and school, now I have the background knowledge as to how these documents are created. It is nice to know the reasoning behind how the informational data is put together to inform the reader. My original writing was put together keeping a non-technical audience in mind, and defining a term that I encounter in my line of work. As a dental hygienist, I am often the one that patients turn to for information regarding various aspects of their oral health. I keep my knowledge current by attending continuing education courses, I can then offer the public evidence-based answers.
For the purpose of this assignment, I enjoyed reading journal articles, research on websites, and, brainstorming on how to put my assignment together in order to explain this term in a non-technical manner. Sometimes patients can have good oral hygiene and still suffer from bad breath. This can greatly impact their self-esteem and social interaction due to the embarrassment as a cause of this condition. This is why health care providers should be aware of tonsilloliths and preventative measures. Tonsilloliths are often one of the primary causes of chronic bad breath, patients are often unaware of this. I often search for other potential causes first, but I also examine the tonsils and surrounding tissues for causes of bad breath and discomfort. When there is a history of chronic suffering with tonsilloliths, I offer suggestions on how to help prevent this condition. Drinking lots of water, and gargling with mouthwash or salt/warm water rinsing can offer some relief. A referral to an ear, nose, and throat specialist could be necessary in severe cases.
The peer review process offered me wonderful feedback on which to draw from in order to improve my writing for this assignment. It is great to receive suggestions on how to improve this assignment from a peer’s perspective. I have taken those recommendations to edit and revise my assignment. Looking back on the process, I find that after editing my assignment it has improved, it is clearer and more concise, I can see what I had previously missed in the original work. I appreciate the recommendations, it is wonderful to have my peer’s, Joyce Wu, perspective on my writing. I was glad to hear that she found it informative, and easy to understand despite being a dental hygiene related topic. As per my review of her assignment titled ‘Scope Creep’, I thought it was written in an organized manner. I had no previous knowledge of the term, and I was able to understand the defined term to the point in which I would now feel confident in describing it to others. The description of the term was clear and informative, all of the objectives were met.
Writing Team Email-3
To: adrienneyap@alumni.ubc.ca
From: brenda.martinez@alumni.ubc.ca
Subject: ENG 301-Writing Team
September 17, 2019
Hi Adrienne,
I am delighted to know that we will be working together this semester!
It’s wonderful to have received your response to Uzman Zahoor’s invitation regarding our English 301 writing team. I have read your letter of application, I consider that you would be a highly resourceful addition to our team. Your experience in creative writing, attention to detail, and editing expertise would be valuable throughout our collaborative work together this semester. I am hoping to be part of a team that is supportive in growth efforts to achieve common goals throughout this course, and from reading our team’s autobiographies and letters of application, I believe that our skills are complementary. I am excited to start working with all of you.
Cheers, Brenda
Writing Team Email-2
To: joyce.wu@ubc.ca
From: brenda.martinez@alumni.ubc.ca
Subject: ENG 301-Writing Team
September 17, 2019
Hi Joyce,
I am intrigued by your analytical and problem solving abilities in your work as a human resources business analyst, as described in your letter of application. I truly believe that these are important qualities of team-work, and it would be great if we could work together during this course. Your clear and effective communication skills would be a great asset to our writing team. Like yourself, I also look forward to growing intellectually, and to improve my business and technical communication skills. It would be wonderful to work with you, and to embark on this academic journey together. I have attached my letter of application to this email, if you find that we could create a team and work well together, I would be delighted to hear from you.
All the best, Brenda
English 301 Brenda Martinez Letter of Application
Writing Team Email-1
To: uzmanzahoor@alumni.ubc.ca
From: brenda.martinez@alumni.ubc.ca
Subject: ENG 301-writing team
September 17, 2019
Hello Usman,
After reviewing your letter of application to join a writing team, I have come to the conclusion that we could work very well together this semestre. Like yourself, I am also hoping to become part of a team that has a supportive learning and communication environment. I believe that your work with customer service and sales, has greatly developed your writing style and tone, and I enjoyed reading your autobiography. I agree with you in the sense that this course will help us improve our technical writing, and business communications. I look forward to embarking on this academic journey, and hope that you would consider creating a writing team together. I have attached my writing team application letter to this email for you to review. If you find that we share common goals for the purpose of this course, please feel free to contact me through email.
Best Regards, Brenda
Memorandum Email-Letter of Application
To: erika.paterson@ubc.ca
From: brenda.martinez@alumni.ubc.ca
Subject: Letter of Application Memorandum
Date: September 17, 2019
Hello Dr. Erika Paterson,
I am emailing you regarding my recent blog post, my letter of application is ready to be reviewed by my classmates. I look forward to reading other students’ letters of application, and connecting with them to form a writing team. In my letter of application directed to my classmates I have described:
- My career accomplishments thus far
- Future professional and academic goals.
- Volunteer projects that I have participated in, and my previous collaborative team work experiences.
- I have reflected on my strengths and weaknesses, and the reasons for which I am motivated to grow as a writer throughout the course.
Attached to this email is my letter of application for you to review, I appreciate your invitation to participate in the writing team selection process.
Best Regards, Brenda Martinez
English 301 Brenda Martinez Letter of Application
Letter of Application
University of British Columbia
2329 Westbrook Mall
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4
September 17, 2019
RE: English 301: Technical Communications, Letter of Application
My fellow classmates,
I am writing this letter of application to prospectively join your writing team this semester. The purpose of this letter is to share with you some of my professional accomplishments, as well as, express my qualifications in order to become a member of your team. After reading my autobiography, you will find that I am in the process of completing my dental hygiene degree through UBC. I have worked in the dental field for the past 14 years, and I look forward to the opportunities for growth in my career, my goal is to work with public health services. A rewarding experience in my career, was when I volunteered abroad with Health Mission Outreach Canada (HMO), a non-profit charitable medical and dental volunteer organization. I travelled to El Salvador, with a team of 34 medical and dental professionals, collaborating inter-professionally providing care to almost 2000 patients in a week. This experience has made me appreciate the work that I do so much more, it has increased my passion to promote oral health and to not take for granted the oral care that I provide for my patients. Out of my graduating class, I received the Hazel McCallion community service award. This was given to me because of the demonstrated compassion, and the time dedicated outside of school work providing access to care and oral health services to those in need, working alongside with various volunteer groups.
Some of the strengths that I could bring to this team, are that I am easy going and have experience with team work. I am a dedicated student, and strive to meet deadlines in a timely manner. I consider that I have strong writing, and communication skills. I also have an evidence-based research background. I consider that there could be challenges throughout this process, but I am motivated to resolve issues, and have overcome some of the technical difficulties already. Some of my weaknesses are that I might not have much experience working with online resources and groups, this is my first online semester. I also tend to over analyze my writing, and I am not a strong editor, but I am hoping to improve in these areas.
With the mindset to improve my technical writing skills, my learning philosophy is to primarily have a broad overview of the content. Then I have a better understanding of the components of the work required. I am detail oriented and like to work with patience, and to take it one step at a time, in order to ensure that I don’t miss anything that is required for the projects.
If you find that my experience and what I have to offer resonates with you, it would be my pleasure to work with you in order to reach common goals throughout this course. You may reach me through email, brenda.martinez@alumni.ubc.ca. I look forward to connecting with you and beginning this academic journey.
Sincerely, Brenda Martinez