Communication:
Effective communication is considered one of the most important abilities that one should acquire at school. This competency plays a great role not only in group work but also when it comes to asking teachers questions and getting support from others academically. Consistently keeping in touch with others is one of the resolutions that I decided to do if I want to succeed in a course. Currently, we are lucky enough to communicate with others through a communication tool – technology. Being within reach with others more quickly and efficiently is one of the greatest benefits of this tool. I often use Instagram and Microsoft Word to communicate with my peers to get academic support from them or help them if they have concerns. Aside from those apps, Microsoft Teams is another tool that I use to communicate and stay connected with my teachers and peers. Receiving feedback from peers provides one a chance to fix any mistakes made before officially handing work in for assessment. I find this opportunity to be valuable personally on a lot of occasions. For me, there was one time that I felt communicating with others had significantly improved my work. This occasion took place when I was doing a group project with my classmates for Pre-Cal 10. This was a project on graphing functions of variables x and y. At that time, I totally had no idea how to present x and y on a graph because I just got back to school after a family trip. My classmates explained to me the pieces and bites that I fell behind with thoroughly, and I was able to catch up with the class after a week of work, and that is when I truly realized the importance of classmates.
Critical Thinking:
All human beings possess the ability to think critically, which is inherent in their minds; however, how one can think critically may differ at varying degrees. Personally, I believe my critical thinking skills aren’t that bad. I can always come up with an effective idea in most group work at school; when it comes to individual assignments, I become very conscious of what I’m doing and always “triple-check” before I hand my work in. In more detail, I incorporate others’ ideas by carefully and keenly listening to their opinions first. Then, I state my thoughts on the situation and conclude with a statement that is reasonable upon my peers’ agreement. Also, when it comes to individual work, I often take a glance at the work first and work it out with no rush, and if allowed, I would communicate with my peers to increase the accuracy.
Creative thinking:
Creative thinking is one of those skills that you can’t grasp instantly. Increasing your accumulated experiences and knowledge takes more work than other methods do. I build the skills I need to make my ideas work by referring to my past experiences and lessons from past lectures. This is often done with various steps and attempts to direct my future results. Sometimes, I accept failures, setbacks, and ambiguities; however, rather than giving up, I use them to advance my thinking. I can also build on others’ ideas and add new ideas of my own by combining the two to help me solve problems. Once, during a chemistry experiment, my group members and I were really confused about the handout procedures on the titration lab; however, we inquired with the group beside us and successfully overcame this difficulty based on combining the ideas of the group beside us and our own.
Personal awareness and responsibility:
I always bring positive energy to my classroom with full of enthusiasm. When my classmates’ emotions are down, I always comfort them and make them feel better. The skill of empathy is one of the skills that I feel especially strong at; therefore, people who implement this skill are able to identify and understand other peoples’ feelings. I think that I am quite empathetic because I can always feel the anxiety of others as if I were the one who was actually experiencing it. In addition, another strength that I possess is my social interaction skills. I know how to build a healthy relationship with other people as well as how to maintain it; thus, I also possess attentiveness, which is helpful when making a social connection.
Social Responsibility:
I always include the people who are left out when choosing partners before the teacher assigns them a group. I do remember that I was always the one that got left out in elementary school due to my bashful personality, but it’s no longer the case since I’ve changed and grown. For now, I want to prevent others from going through what I went through when I was a kid. I do it by actively including them as a member of my group in group projects. I always ask others questions in a kind and polite manner during all classes. One of the most recent ones is when I discussed with my friends and asked them about some challenging topic in chemistry in a proper manner, for example, “Hi name, do you know how to solve this question? Thanks!”
Positive personal and cultural identity:
I really enjoy learning new things, and I am constantly seeking out new learning opportunities. I consider myself growth-focused and unafraid of challenges both in school and in the community, and I think that this spirit has made a unique me. I feel like I can learn better by listening rather than reading. I came to this conclusion from having tried out different learning methods over the past few years and selecting the one that is most suitable for me. I think that my family is the most important thing to me, and I truly cherish them for giving birth to me.
