Reflections on the Blog and the Process

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Throughout this module I have seen a great increase in a number of my communication skills.

 

Initial Opinions

My first impressions were that this module would have some easier parts for me as an actor. I figured any sort of live communication or podcasting would not be too much of a challenge given my current skill set. However, I also knew that I was not familiar with blogging at all and knew that I was therefore lacking a lot of crucial knowledge. I was soon dissuaded of its difficulty through the provision of terrific resources during our lectures as well as the knowledge on how to use them effectively.

 

Pitch Feedback

I learned two key points in my pitch feedback. Firstly my structure was not as well put together as I would have liked and did not stand up well under the pressure of presentation. This caused it to jump around and certain key points were either missed out or not given enough emphasis.

This leads onto the next thing I learned which is that I need to watch the time. I was way too slow and was stopped before I could finish my pitch. This was caused by a jumpy structure that lacked cohesion. As a result I have learned that by fixing the structure and making it hold together better my control of the time will be greater.

 

Pitch Comments

My comments on the class blog on my own performance on my pitch were as follows:

My research topic was the fall of civilization.

I think I conveyed the purpose and audience effectively.

I think I handled the questions better than the presentation because I prefer to have conversations than to preach to people.

I don't have any fear of public speaking and am not easily shaken when in front of an audience.

I'm a bit annoyed that I ran over. I often tend to over indulge in my points and go off on unnecessary tangents.

 

The Mock Blog

The feedback I received for my mock blog demonstrated two things to me. Firstly, that I have a good understanding of style and colour leading to nice presentation of a blog. Secondly, my feedback made me realise that I should use more gadgets to provide additional information that can supplement my whole blog.

 

By studying this module, I have developed the following skills:

-          A style of accessible communication for online platforms

-          An understanding of blogging

-          Using different methods of information dissemination

 

With the benefit of hindsight there are a couple of things I would have done differently:

-          I would have planned the more in-depth psychological and academic sides to the topic.

-          I would have found more examples civilizations outside of the Western sphere that could teach more about different collapse’s on a more global scale.


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