The Written Assignments
There are four mandatory writing assignments for the
learning portfolio. Each of the portfolio assignments is explained as a
submission below and should be completed as explained.
The Written Responses
For effective communication, it is essential that you learn to respond
appropriately to what you hear, watch and read. For your learning portfolio in
BHB2802, an essential component is the comments you make responding to your
classmates’ posts. Comments on at least
three classmates’ posts should be made within the tutorial week following the
one when you first uploaded your own post to the portfolio. (See in red below.)
Submission 1: Formal Email: Self Introduction
Due by the start of the tutorial, Week 2
Post a formal email, addressed to me, in which you describe your educational and/or
professional experience and what you would consider your strengths and
weaknesses when it comes to communication. Try to be clear and concise and yet
comprehensive in your description. The audience should be viewed as me as well as a group of
professional peers.
This
should be 250 to 300 words.
As
you respond to your peers’ self-descriptions, try to give feedback that
establishes a connection between their experiences and your own.
Submission 2: Reflection
Due by the end of Week 6
Post a reflection on an interpersonal communication problem you have
recently experienced. Use as a framework for this reflection Gibb’s Model of Reflection
(1988). You should describe the workplace (or other social) context, the
problem scenario and possible root causes, and the persons involved. Also, be
careful to explain how you felt about the situation, how you evaluated it, and
what conclusions you could draw about the root causes and effects. DO NOT describe how the problem
was resolved.
The purpose of this assignment is for you to get feedback from your classmates on how they think your problem can be resolved. In fact, I think I had mentioned in class how you should frame the ending of the scenario described with a question.
Let me give you an example.
Let's say I recently ordered pizza online. When the pizza arrived, I found that it was not my order. So instead of keeping my cool, I acted angry with the delivery guy and refused to pay. At that point the delivery guy called his store and connected me with the person who had taken my order. At that moment I realized that the person to whom I had given the order had a strong English accent and was definitely not a native speaker. He might not have comprehended correctly the first time I called as I placed the order. This time I am assured though that a new order would be prepared, for no charge, and so I have calmed down. At this point I feel some guilt for frying the delivery man. How might I then make amends with the delivery fellow?
The purpose of this assignment is for you to get feedback from your classmates on how they think your problem can be resolved. In fact, I think I had mentioned in class how you should frame the ending of the scenario described with a question.
Let me give you an example.
Let's say I recently ordered pizza online. When the pizza arrived, I found that it was not my order. So instead of keeping my cool, I acted angry with the delivery guy and refused to pay. At that point the delivery guy called his store and connected me with the person who had taken my order. At that moment I realized that the person to whom I had given the order had a strong English accent and was definitely not a native speaker. He might not have comprehended correctly the first time I called as I placed the order. This time I am assured though that a new order would be prepared, for no charge, and so I have calmed down. At this point I feel some guilt for frying the delivery man. How might I then make amends with the delivery fellow?
This
should be 250 to 300 words.
As
you respond to your peers’ reflections, try to offer suggestions for how they
might solve the problem based on what you know and have learned about
interpersonal communication so far.
Submission 3: Project Synopsis
Due (first draft) by Week 8
Post a Project Synopsis,
which describes each of the following:
·
a specific workplace context
·
your project’s thematic focus
·
the interpersonal communication problem being explored
·
the nature of your project’s
professional importance
·
the objective and scope of your
study
·
proposed data
collection/research method
·
potential
solutions/implementation for problem resolution
·
benefits to the workplace
·
concluding thoughts
Your synopsis should be persuasive: In it you must convince an audience
of peers that the interpersonal communication problem you have chosen merits
study and that your team has developed an approach to solving such a problem.
This
should be 1000 to 1200 words.
Formative
feedback, based on criteria provided by the instructor, will be provided first
by a peer team during a peer review session and then by your instructor during
a consultation. The final draft will be evaluated. All drafts should be
included in the portfolio.
Submission 4: Critical
Reflection
Due by the start of the tutorial, Week 13
Post a critical reflection on your learning experience from the project
in this module. In the reflection, you should explain in detail what you
studied and what you learned, why you did it, how the process made you feel,
and how the experience might have changed your views and/or any future behavior.
You should conclude by discussing how you might be changed by what you have learned
and how this might impact you in the future.
This should be 250-300 words.
This should be 250-300 words.
As
you respond to your peers’ reflections, pay particular attention to how they
state they have been changed by the experience. Try to connect what you have
learned about interpersonal communication with what your peer describes,
explaining common points and differences.
