MTE 306 Reflective Journal-Eghele Fortune Akporotu by Akporotu Eghele https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw Made with good vibes en-us 2020-10-23 11:03:17 UTC 2021-05-10 08:15:02 UTC hello@padlet.com It was a whole new system of learning for me, I was excited about leaving my country Nigeria to study in the UK, start my international foundation year programme at Solent University Southampton. I understood it was going to be an hybrid form of learning i.e a mixture of onsite and online learning.The first week of lectures was a bit confusing as I am new to online classes but over the next few weeks I got the hang of it, then I began to understand my timetable and tried my best to meet up with my classes and tutorials.Over the following weeks, the thought of my visa delay kept upsetting me, the feeling of being left behind, and the fact that all my friends had travelled made me really sad and overwhelmed. I had limitations studying online, as I couldn’t assess live videos, the internet connection was so poor and also very expensive. Not being able to attend classes as much as I wanted bothered me a whole lot and it added to my worries.However, I received information from the school just yesterday that a decision has been made on my application, and I am really ecstatic to come to the UK and enjoy the beautiful Autumn and winter, meet up with classes and explore the beautiful city of Southampton. I know its going to be difficult at first, leaving my family and moving overseas but I know I’ll be strong enough to acclimatize to my new environment. akporotueghele884 https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/897215768 2020-11-06 11:21:31 UTC https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/897215768 TASK 2 The purpose of writing this essay, is to reflect on the last Academic Seminar on the Maximizing Academic Potential course which was held on the 11th December 2020. We were given a week to research, have a clear understanding of the topic, make notes and prepare in time for the seminar presentation by our tutor Miss Ella. During the presentation, although I presented my facts, research and opinions, according to the feedback I got from my tutor I was rather subdued in the speaking process, which is true because I didn’t take the initiative, I kept waiting to be referred and nominated as opposed to cutting in without interruption and stating my point. Additionally, my notes were well prepared, but I still have to learn how to reference with the Solent Harvard referencing style as I made a few mistakes when referencing. Furthermore, I spoke too long when it was my turn to speak thereby preventing others from speaking. However, after my seminar discussion I got a feedback from my tutor, and I got a B1 with the overall grade being 68%. I was so pleased about my grade because it was an upgrade from the mock seminar presentation, I have a lot of learning to do still, but I am happy because I made conscious effort to do better and I did. I am looking to improve on areas that have been cited by my tutor, and make more effort to doing better, and getting my grade up. I intend to do more self study, and pay more attention to my colleagues and pay more attention to my studies so I can perform better in the future. Although I am happy that I did better than I have been doing, I would nevertheless, keep striving to be better in future seminar presentations akporotueghele884 https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1089209601 2021-01-14 20:39:37 UTC https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1089209601 TASK 4 In the draft extended essay, I received valuable feedback that I will use to improve on the final draft. In the feedback, the tutor mentioned that the language used was arguably good and that the task requirements were met. However, I made various mistakes that I need to improve on. First, I need to provide clear background information in the introductory paragraph about how bilingualism enhances cognition and why it is important. Providing the information will be critical to guiding other sections of the paper by outlining what is expected. Also, I need to revise the thesis statement and make it argumentative. For example, I should provide evidence of any argument that refutes the ideas raised. The same should be reflected on the main points raised, where any opposing argument should be mentioned in the paper. Therefore, every paragraph in my final paper should be argumentative and connected back to the thesis statement. Secondly, I need to avoid the generalization of ideas. When writing the paper, my tutor suggests asking questions such as how and why to avoid generalization. Also, the sources used should be less than ten years old and accurate. Thirdly, my tutor recommends using Solent Harvard referencing style to avoid formatting errors in my final paper. In the draft paper, I made serious repetition mistakes and used incorrect phrases not allowed in academic papers, such as more so and boosted. I will avoid these mistakes in the final paper. Overall, I feel that I have many improvements to make. The tutor's feedback is essential in ensuring that I get a better grade on my final paper. akporotueghele884 https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1360474552 2021-03-27 22:26:43 UTC https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1360474552 TASK 5 akporotueghele884 https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1470578484 This paper will reflect my past few months, during the international foundation programme. I thought I was ready, when I started classes, got my visa and came down here, but in actual facts I wasn't. I started classes on a good note, and along the way had a couple of challenges because I was new to online learning, and computer devices. With time, I started to adjust, reflect, ask questions and gradually I picked up the pace. The main challenges I had during this course was the MTE 310 Problem Solving and my Essay writing. Before I came into this country I believed myself to be a pretty good essay writer, but there are so many things I didn't even know about essay writing. I didn't know what an outline was, I didn't know anything about intext citation and references, and I learnt, paid attention in class, did my own research, asked my friends and tutor whenever I need assistance, and a result, there was a build up on my grades. The first ever essay I wrote I had a C1, followed by a B2 and then an A1. Although there's always a room for improvement, I could understand that I wasn't where I used to be when I started the programme. My next challenge was Problem Solving, before coming into the UK I had never seen anything like it. All topics were based on real life problems, it was a struggle for me as I'm not one to like Mathematics, but I grew to love the module and as time went on, I understood what was needed of me.
During this course, I have made friends for life for example Michael and Balogun, I have learnt to be able to speak freely in front of a camera and an audience, this is a skill I gained from the seminars and presentations thanks to the MAP class. In addition, I also gained Microsoft skills. Furthermore, I have enjoyed every bit of the class, the interaction With each other and our tutors, learning about each others cultures and lifestyles.
The very first tip I'll give to a student starting the international Foundation programme is do not lack concentration, and do not be afraid to ask for help where you need it, because there are lots of distraction, and when a person starts missing classes, that's where they start having problems.
However, my problem solving skills will help in my day to day activities throughout my life and career, my essay writing skills will always come in handy when I have assessments, dissertation or a proposal during my degree program. The MAP, MGV and DULAC classes have given me a solid English foundation in terms of speaking and writing and with these I plan to excel in my future degree here at Solent university.]]> 2021-04-28 18:33:35 UTC https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1470578484 TASK 3 akporotueghele884 https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1508185721 This paper aims to reflect on my performance on the essay on the Developing and understanding language in an Academic context course following the feedback, as well as to highlight strategies to improve on my writing skills. Additionally, the paper also describes the strong points and weaknesses of the essay, and what I’ve learned. It also analyses the areas for improvement, the areas I could have done better and what I can do to develop my writing skills.
The previous essay made me realize how much learning in essay writing I need to have. My essay didn’t have a clear thesis statement, there was too many specific information in my introduction which could have been better placed in the body of the work. And most importantly, I didn’t answer the question that was asked. I think my mistakes might be due to my lack of experience in writing academic essays. Also, I allowed my personal opinions to becloud my academic judgement, thereby failing to provide counter judgement.
In addition, I included citations, without a proper reference list, this in itself is unacademic as without a reference list, the reader will be unable to locate the article that has been cited thus making my work unverifiable (James 2018). It also enables me to give credit to the work of writers whose words I borrowed in my essay
My most recent essay writing was an eye opener to academic writing skills, as I have realized how to write a clear outline, how to write a brief but concrete conclusion as the one I wrote previously was too long and out of line because I introduced new ideas and made it the longest paragraph.
Summarily, this reflective exercise has enabled me to identify my strengths and weaknesses in academic writing. Accordingly, I shall pay more attention, and allocate more study time to the DULAC course in other to do better in my Academic writing.
REFERENCE LIST
CHRISTINE,J.,2018. Why is Referencing important? 2nd ed. Australia; UNSW Sydney
]]> 2021-05-10 08:00:26 UTC https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1508185721 TASK 1 akporotueghele884 https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1508193284  It was a whole new system of learning for me, I was excited about leaving my country Nigeria to study in the UK, start my international foundation year programme at Solent University Southampton. I understood it was going to be an hybrid form of learning i.e a mixture of onsite and online learning.The first week of lectures was a bit confusing as I am new to online classes but over the next few weeks I got the hang of it, then I began to understand my timetable and tried my best to meet up with my classes and tutorials.Over the following weeks, the thought of my visa delay kept upsetting me, the feeling of being left behind, and the fact that all my friends had travelled made me really sad and overwhelmed. I had limitations studying online, as I couldn’t assess live videos, the internet connection was so poor and also very expensive. Not being able to attend classes as much as I wanted bothered me a whole lot and it added to my worries.However, I received information from the school just yesterday that a decision has been made on my application, and I am really ecstatic to come to the UK and enjoy the beautiful Autumn and winter, meet up with classes and explore the beautiful city of Southampton. I know its going to be difficult at first, leaving my family and moving overseas but I know I’ll be strong enough to acclimatize to my new environment. ]]> 2021-05-10 08:03:37 UTC https://padlet.com/akporotueghele884/s6m4p3xwhxqypfpw/wish/1508193284