Reflections on the Communication Skills for Teachers’ course
What are your communicative strengths and weaknesses?
What do you do well?
I feel that I can communicate rather fluently and present my ideas in a proper manner when sitting down.
I speak with an appropriate tempo and with an accent that most people in Singapore would understand.
I can communicate well and amicably with everyone in my class.
What do you want to improve?
Emails
I am not the best candidate when it comes to writing emails. In real life scenarios, I often find myself sending 2 emails, the first one being the bulk of what I want to say, and the second one some additional information that I somehow remembered after sending out the first one. I also need to improve on the tone which I want the email to express.
Speeches & Presentations
Only when I am well prepared do I get to deliver a decent speech. However, that speech itself contains many errors and tell-tale signs that I was clearly nervous.
How will you work on these skills?
Emails
I will take into consideration what I have learnt in this module. How should the tone of the email be, how not to be so direct in my approach. I will also remember to use the email checklist to ensure that what I have written is within the guidelines of a good email.
Speeches & Presentations
Preparation is not enough. I have to know what I want to talk about by hard, so that everything just flows out without a glitch. Often, I neglect warming up my vocals before giving a speech. Hence I will constantly refer to those videos regarding vocal techniques to refine my speaking proficiencies.
