Dear Professor Blackstone,

Have you run a half-marathon before? Let me tell you about my experience. I ran a half-marathon back in July of 2023. It was my life goal for the longest time, and I was determined to complete it. Achieving this dream was challenging and only I could lift the bedsheets at 7am and step out of bed to train. I had to be the one taking the effort, building the foundations of running. Similar to communication skills, only I am responsible for a step out of my comfort zone and building the foundations of good communication which is something I hope to achieve through this module.

Having entered Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) in 2023, I am majoring in civil engineering. Like other students in SIT, I graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic with a Diploma in Civil Engineering. My interest in engineering developed back in secondary school. Observing workers carry out road works on the way home made me intrigued and sparked an interest in construction. My interest furthered as I stumbled upon many great feats of engineering such as the Burj Khalifa skyscraper in Dubai.

Growing up as a talkative kid, I was never afraid to ask questions. This became a habit and is one of my communication strengths. However, I do have areas of weakness that could be improved on through this module, primarily my command of English. My English can be quite weak at times as I am used to speaking in Singlish at home or with my friends. I tend to make grammatical mistakes and use the wrong vocabulary when giving formal presentations. Just as how I was committed to improve my stamina while training for my half-marathon, I hope to improve on my weaknesses as I go through this module under your guidance.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Muhammad Mudzakkir Bin Muhammed

Comments

  1. edmondsoon22 January 2024 at 17:02

    Hi Mudz, your introduction is engaging, drawing parallels between your half-marathon experience and the journey to improve communication skills.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nabil Khairi22 January 2024 at 19:04

    Hi Mudz, your introduction is good as it clear and concise. Thank you for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Mudzakkir Muhammed22 January 2024 at 19:10

    I commented on Nabil, Irham and Nadiah's blog.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Brad Blackstone26 January 2024 at 17:31

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Brad Blackstone26 January 2024 at 17:33

    Dear Mudz,

    Thank you for this interesting and fairly detailed letter. In it you effectively address all the key elements of the prompt. It's interesting for us to find out something about your learning journey and your evolving interests, particularly the goal of doing a half marathon. What I would like to learn more about is your actual training regime. How far did you run for training in each session, and for how long (as in months) did you train? Also, what was your motivation for doing so? Explaining this would give context for the goal.

    Further in the letter, you shine light on your comm skills, and I appreciate how you compare improving these skills that to running.

    There is one issue in this letter with language expression:
    -- Similar to communication skills, only I am responsible for a step out of my comfort zone and building the foundations of good communication which is something I hope to achieve through this module. >
    Similarly in tgerms of communication skills, only I am responsible for stepping out of my comfort zone and building the foundations of good communication, which is something I hope to achieve through this module.

    I look forward to the revision of this and to learning more about you this term.

    Cheers,

    Brad

    ReplyDelete
  6. Nabil Khairi29 January 2024 at 08:16

    Hi Mudz,

    Thank you for thoughtful email and sharing your experience of running a half-marathon. It is commendable to hear about your dedication and commitment to achieving such a personal goal. The comparison you made between your running journey and the development of communication skills were insightful.

    I appreciate your openness to discuss your strengths and areas for improvement in communications. It is good that you realise that you have to step out from your comfort zone to have a effective communication

    I understand your challenge from Singlish to formal English. Rest assured, we will work together during this module to enhance your command of English.

    Cheers,
    Nabil Khairi

    ReplyDelete

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