Unit 2 was a busy few weeks, but we accomplished a lot.
It all began by choosing a problem, inefficiency, or deficiency in a familiar setting with the intention of recommending a solution. The issue had to be complex enough to require substantial investigation and analysis. This proved to be challenging. A formal report of 12 to 15 pages needs to be developed by the end of the term and I wanted to make sure to chose a topic that would be sufficient and interesting. I reflected on several issues, not limited to reducing waste at the dental office where I work, improving online learning practices during Covid confinement at my son’s school since the introduction to remote education, improving the efficiency of the use of the Teamsnap app by my son’s hockey team. I brainstormed ways to collect data and how to solve the different problems. I finally decided to investigate ways to reduce gathering in public areas at my place of work. Social distancing is an important topic and I believe that the improvements I suggest could be helpful to my colleagues and employers.
Since I submitted the research proposal, it occurred to me that I could start gathering information by placing a suggestion box in the staff lunchroom. I thought that it could help me in formulating the interview and survey questions. I have begun distributing the surveys already. The data I have collected so far has confirmed some of my suspicions and called attention to new aspects of the problem. The interviews will begin shortly. I am eager to compile the results from all of the different sources and begin detailing my solution.
The peer review process of the research proposal was very beneficial. My partner pointed out some flaws that I had overlooked in the document and made very constructive suggestions for improvement. It is very helpful to have a second set of eyes to look over your work, not just for grammatical errors, but to improve the structure, clarity, and focus your document. After completing the peer review on my partner, I also looked over my own work with a new outlook. I saw efficient, direct, and concise ways of phrasing ideas and tried to apply the same principles in my work.
The LinkedIn portion of the assignment was enjoyable. What a useful project and a great opportunity to complete the professional step with guidance from the professor and our peers. Sharing research on best practices with our writing team was a great way to gain access to ample information on the forum. In sending the memo and receiving feedback from the professor, it has finally sunk in… there should be no use of pronouns in professional writing. Not even in memos. I don’t know why it took me so long to break the habit, but I have seen the light.
The final step in the unit was to design a peer review template and use it to review our partner’s LinkedIn profile. This assignment allowed us to walk a mile in our professor’s shoes. It made me think about what our professor is looking for in our writing and what makes a document effective and complete. Creating the template required us to evaluate all aspects of a written document. It made me realize the importance of following directions, verifying checklists, and consulting different sources to crosscheck instructions. I also think that making adjustments to a document can sometimes cause us to loose focus on the flow. Once finished altering the text, it is a good idea to come back to it a few minutes later to make sure that changes in tense or sequence haven’t created grammatical errors or choppiness.
Research Proposal Christina Hruby