Critical Reflection

Role of Peer and Tutor Feedback

Peer and tutor assessment is important as it reflects what others think about our work. The alternative perspective from peers and tutors allows us to see what we cannot observe from our own point of view. Feedback is also an important tool in helping us learn from our mistakes as well as improve on our existing work. While we do not necessarily have to agree with every feedback that we receive, we have to appreciate those which are constructive. Giving feedback to our peers not only helps them realise possible areas for improvement, but it also allows us to  realise our own weaknesses. Furthermore, positive feedback functions as a motivational mechanism for us to do better in the future. Since tutors are more knowledgeable in that area of study, their feedback is often more constructive and they help us improve our writing skills. On the other hand, peer feedback allows us to relate our ideas with them better since we are at the same stage of learning.

However, feedback could be demoralising at various instances. When we receive negative comments, we might feel disheartened, especially when we know that we have invested much effort and time on our work. Furthermore, our peers might not be knowledgeable in the field that we are working on. Their feedback might contradict tutor feedback and also our own assessment. As a result, their feedback might not be effective in providing constructive ideas. On other occasion, giving feedback to others develop a sense of superiority in us, such that we tend to look down on the person who is receiving our feedback. This sense of superiority over others leads to the ineffectiveness of peer evaluation as we lose our objectivity in giving feedback.

Therefore, an effective peer and tutor feedback is one that adds value to our work and helps us in our future. When we receive feedback, it is up to us to take what we deem as constructive and filter out comments which does not add any value. On the other hand, when we give feedback, we must remain objective and neutral. We must not allow our pride and ego to overshadow our objectivity. We must also be knowledgeable before giving our comments on a particular are of work.

Presentation Reflection

On Monday, I presented on the topic of "Deleting Cyberbullying in Singapore". I personally feel that I did not perform to my best. I was nervous during the presentation, causing me to stutter on certain occasions. At times, the words that I wanted to deliver just couldn't come out of my mouth, causing me to make frequent pauses before I complete my sentence. I also realise that the video I showed in class actually have key purposes in spicing up my presentation. Rather, I should have developed on my personal experience as a police officer during my NS term in relating to the issue of cyberbullying.

Nevertheless, this is definitely a good platform for me to know my weaknesses and pick up from there. I definitely enjoyed the whole presentation session as it allows me to learn from others and also learn from my own weaknesses.

Essay Draft 3

With the advancement in technology and the availability of the Internet infrastructure in Singapore, social networking has become accessible to almost everyone. Social media serve as platforms for virtual networking. However, they are increasingly used by teenagers to express their discontentment about other teens. A worrying trend has prevailed, such that more teenagers are involved in cyberbullying. Research has shown that Singapore recorded the second highest cases of cyberbullying among teenagers worldwide (Singapore is the Second Highest Nation of Cyberbullies, n.d.). Cyberbullying is detrimental as it causes psychological and emotional pressure on the victims. In some occasions, cyberbullying poses threat to the physical well-being of the victims such that they resort to committing suicide as a way out of the bullying. To counter this problem, various corrective measures such as the anti-harassment law and counselling programmes were implemented by the Singapore government. Nevertheless, while these corrective measures are crucial, preventive measures through education in school and at home remain the most fundamental solution to suppressing cyber-bullying among teenagers in Singapore. 

Cyberbullying in Singapore is not a recent phenomena. With a better access to the Internet and an advancement in handheld gadgets, teenagers are spending more time on social media. They use social media as a platform to communicate with their friends and also to share their personal life experiences. However, social media is increasingly used by the teenagers to carry out personal attack. This worrying trend has captured the government’s attention, which led to a series of measures to counter cyberbullying.

Various corrective measures to alleviate the problem of cyberbullying have been introduced by the Singapore government. Corrective measures focus on rehabilitating the victims and offenders of cyberbullying incidents. The anti-harassment law, passed in March 2014 by the parliament, aims at countering cyberbullying. It emphasises the importance of protecting possible victims against harassment by outlining proper cyberspace conduct and punishments for those who break the law (Neo, 2014). This law allows the authority to exercise jurisdiction against offenders through corrective measures such as fines and jail sentences, depending on the severity of the case. On top of that, the government also works closely with social support groups to rehabilitate cyberbully offenders. The rehabilitation efforts include counselling and medical treatments for repeated offenders who are believed to have underlying mental problems. In schools, social workers and counsellors are on standby to provide their help to victims and the offenders who are involved in cyberbullying.

However, such corrective measures only provide a short-term solution to the problem. It does not necessarily prevent cyberbullying from reoccurring. This is because research has shown that the reason why these teenagers engage in cyberbullying is because they were either victims themselves or have seen someone close to them being bullied through cyberspace (Delete Cyberbullying - Why Do People Cyberbully, n.d.). Furthermore, some offenders mention that cyberbullying allows them to project their power and superiority over their victims. They derive pleasure from the sufferings of their victims. To make matters worse, offenders often remain anonymous. This obscures the effectiveness of corrective measures as discussed above since corrective measures ignore the motivational factors that drive these teenagers to engage in cyberbullying.

Preventive measures is therefore crucial to get to the baseline of this problem. This is because it offers a mechanism to prohibit cyberbullying from happening. One of the most fundamental aspects of preventive measures is education. Educating the social media users, particularly the teenagers, about the cyberspace ethics and restrictions would allow a friendly and safe cyberspace environment. The government, together with the Singapore Children's society for instance, has introduced bully-free campaigns to educate and nurture teenagers to be ethical cyberspace users (Singapore Children's Society - Bully-Free Campaign, n.d.). This campaign also seeks to create awareness of the worrying trend of cyberbullying, and it calls for the involvement of the family and the community to counter cyberbullying. In addition, the Ministry of Education (MOE) introduced the Cyber Wellness programme in schools, where "students learn to respect others by thinking through what they publish online so that they do not hurt others" (Cyber Wellness Programme, 2009). Through these campaigns, teenagers are often reminded of the dangers and consequences of cyberbullying and thus, dissuade them from engaging in such activities.

Such efforts, however, require constant reminders and commitments for it to be effective in the long run. One can argue that education in school alone is insufficient. It also requires education and regulation at home. Parents could play their part by monitoring their children's cyberspace behaviour and also detect if their children is a victim of cyberbullying, so that early help can be provided. For the individuals, they should be committed to observe proper cyberspace ethics. Individuals should not respond to any cyber-threats and get immediate help if they find themselves falling in the cyberbullying trap.

In conclusion, there is no solitary measures that could best counter cyberbullying. Nonetheless, we can argue that preventive measures is more fundamental in dealing with this problem. Preventive measures serve as a first-step in suppressing cyberbullying. Every agents in the society have a pivotal role to play. Countering cyberbullying is therefore a joint effort among the state, the community, the family and the individual.

(861 Words)

References

Cyber Wellness Programmes. (2009, September 14). Retrieved March from http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/parliamentary-replies/2009/09/cyber-wellness-programmes.php

Delete Cyberbullying - Why Do People Cyberbully? (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.deletecyberbullying.org/why-do-people-cyberbully/

Neo, C. (2014, March 14). Anti-harassment laws to fight 'social scourge.' Today Online. Retrieved from http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/anti-harassment-laws-fight-social-scourge

Singapore Children's Society - Bully-Free Campaign. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.bullyfreecampaign.sg/cyber_bullying/index_cyber.php

Family and Life. (n.d.). Singapore is the second highest nation of cyberbullies. Retrieved from http://familyandlife.sg/Nurture/2014/03/Singapore_Second_Highest_Nation_Cyberbullies

Critical Reflection Outline

Role of Peer and Tutor Feedback

Intro

- Feedback is important as it reflects what others think about our content/presentation

- Another person's perspective help us see what we cannot see

- We do not necessarily have to agree with all, but we take what is constructive

Pros:

- Feedbacks allows us expand our ideas/views/perspective of the topic we are working on

- We could also learn from each other's weaknesses through feedback

- Feedback also allows us to realise our strength and it is a form of motivation to do better

- Tutor's feedback, since they are more knowledgeable in that field, are often constructive

- Peer's feedback, since they are of the same level/age as us, allows us to connect better with what they feel

Cons:

- Feedbacks could be demoralising at times

- Sometimes, we get frustrated and might look down on others whom we are giving feedback to

- Our peers might not be an knowledgeable in the field of our work and do not understand our content. Thus, they give feedbacks which contradicts tutor's feedbacks

- Tutors feedbacks are sometimes too long

Reader Response Draft 4

In “Writing Your Way To Happiness”, Parker-Pope (2015) presents a series of research studies to highlight the benefits that people can gain from expressive writing. One of the benefits of expressive writing mentioned in the article is that it helps to alleviate conflict between married couples. A research study was done on 120 married couples who had to write about their conflict from a third-party perspective. The outcome showed an improvement in family relations among couples that engaged in expressive writing as opposed to those who did not. However, expressive writing might not be successful in resolving marriage conflicts if the mechanism that controls and regulates what is being written is absent.

While Parker-Pope (2015) mentions that expressive writing allows the writer to express his troubles and reconstruct his thoughts, it might not always result in a desirable outcome. This is because expressive writing encourages the person to freely express his thoughts, which may include his disgust toward the other party. In the case of a married couple, the wife, for instance, might write down all the negative attitudes and characteristics of her husband throughout their marriage life. Looking at all the unfavourable attitudes of her husband that she has written might only add to her disgust towards her husband instead of alleviating the conflict. The tension between the couple would escalate if both the husband and wife frequently wrote about the negativity of their spouse. Therefore, instead of encouraging the couples to reconstruct their thoughts, expressive writing would only agitate their feelings toward their spouse and prolong the conflict.

Furthermore, the process of writing might be seen as a hassle to couples who in conflict. According to Parker-Pope (2015), expressive writing is about writing and rewriting. This suggests that writing is not a one-off activity and it requires discipline, time and effort in order for a person to gain its benefit. However, when facing a conflict, emotions and moods are affected. Emotions play a critical role in decision-making. When the state of emotions is unstable, it will affect the person’s behaviour and result in poor decision-making (Lamia, 2010). This might hinder the person from achieving a meaningful outcome from expressive writing since their mind is not in the state of tranquility. Since writing requires a certain amount of discipline and time, couples might do something else to divert their attention away from the conflict, such as watching movies or engaging in physical activities, instead of engaging in expressive writing.

In addition to that, writing only helps to ease a conflict temporarily. Expressive writing enables the couple to express their problems such that it acts as a coping mechanism for them (Parker-Pope, 2015). However, these coping mechanisms are only effective in the short run. As long as the couple does not take practical measures to improve their marital happiness, their conflict will not subside. If they do not address the root cause of their conflict, even if they engage in expressive writing, their conflict will persist in the long run.

In conclusion, there is no perfect and absolute mechanism that would best resolve conflicts within married couples. Expressive writing would be more effective in coping with these conflicts only if certain conditions are met. This includes regulating and controlling what is being written in order to avoid undesirable emotions. Also, couples should take additional measures besides writing so as to achieve an optimal outcome when dealing with a conflict.




(574 Words)




References:

Lamia, M. (31 December, 2010). Like it or Not, Emotions Will Drive the Decisions You Make Today. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/intense-emotions-and-strong-feelings/201012/it-or-not-emotions-will-drive-the-decisions-you

Parker-Pope, T. (2015, February 12). Writing your way to happiness  [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/01/19/writing-your-way-to-happiness/?_r=0

Essay Draft 2: Delete Cyberbullying in Singapore

With the advancement in technology and the availability of the Internet infrastructure in Singapore, social networking has become accessible to almost everyone. Social media serves as a platform for virtual networkings. However, it is increasingly used by teenagers to express their discontentment over others. A worrying trend has prevailed, such that more teenagers are involved in cyberbullying. Research has shown that Singapore recorded the second highest cases of cyberbullying among teenagers (Singapore is the Second Highest Nation of Cyberbullies, n.d.). Cyberbullying is detrimental as it causes psychological and emotional pressure on the victims. In some occasions, cyberbullying poses threat to the physical well-being of the victims such that they resort to committing suicide as a way out of the bullying. To counter this problem, various corrective measures such as the anti-harassment laws and counselling programmes were implemented by the government. Nevertheless, while these corrective measures are crucial, preventive measures through education in school and at home remain the most fundamental solution to suppressing cyber-bullying among teenagers in Singapore. 

Various corrective measures to alleviate the problem of cyberbullying have been introduced by the government. Corrective measures focus on rehabilitating the victims and offenders of cyberbullying incidents. The anti-harassment laws, passed in March 2014 by the parliament, aims at countering cyberbullying. It emphasises on the importance of protecting possible victims against harassment by outlining proper cyberspace conducts and punishments for those who break the law (Neo, 2014). This law allows the authority to exercise jurisdiction against offenders through corrective measures such as fines and jail sentences, depending on the severity of the case. On top of that, the government also works closely with social support groups to rehabilitate cyberbully offenders. It includes counselling and medical treatments for repeated offenders who are believed to have underlying mental problems. In schools, counselling help are provided for the victims and the offenders who are involved in cyberbullying.

However, such corrective measures only provide a short-term solution to the problem. It does not necessarily prevent cyberbullying from reoccurring. This is because research has shown that the reason as to why these teenagers engage in cyberbullying is because they were either victims themselves or have seen someone close to them being bullied through cyberspace (Delete Cyberbullying - Why Do People Cyberbully, n.d.). On top of that, some offenders mention that cyberbullying allows them to project their power and superiority over their victims. They derive pleasure from the sufferings of their victims. To make matter worse, offenders often remain anonymous. This complicate the effectiveness of corrective measures as discussed above since it ignores the motivational factors that drive these teenagers to engage in cyberbullying.

Preventive measure is therefore crucial to get to the baseline of this problem. This is because it offers a mechanism to prohibit cyberbullying from happening. One of the most fundamental aspect of preventive measure is education. Educating the social media users about the cyberspace ethics and restrictions, particularly the teenagers, allows a friendly and safe cyberspace environment. The government, together with the Singapore Children's society for instance, has introduced bully-free campaigns to educate and nurture teenagers to be ethical cyberspace users (Singapore Children's Society - Bully-Free Campaign, n.d.). This campaign also seeks to create awareness of the worrying trend of cyberbullying, and it calls for the involvement of the family and the community to counter cyberbullying. On top of that, the Ministry of Education (MOE) introduced the Cyber Wellness programme in schools, where "students learn to respect others by thinking through what they publish online so that they do not hurt others" (Cyber Wellness Programme, 2009). Through these campaigns, teenagers are often reminded of the dangers and consequences of cyberbullying and thus, distant them from  engaging in such activities.

Such efforts, however, require constant reminders and commitments for it to be effective in the long run. One can argue that education in school alone is insufficient. It also requires education and regulation at home. Parents could play their part by monitoring their children's cyberspace behaviour and also detect if their children is a victim of cyberbullying, so that early help can be provided. For the individuals, they should be committed to observe proper cyberspace ethics. Individuals should not respond to any cyber-threats and get immediate help if they find themselves falling in the cyberbullying trap.

In conclusion, there is no solitary measures that could best counter cyberbullying. Nonetheless, we can argue that preventive measures is more fundamental in dealing with this problem. Preventive measures serve as a first-step in suppressing cyberbullying. Every agent in the society have pivotal role to play. Countering cyberbullying is therefore a joint effort among the state, the community, the family and the individual.

(774 Words)

References

Cyber Wellness Programmes. (2009, September 14). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/parliamentary-replies/2009/09/cyber-wellness-programmes.php

Delete Cyberbullying - Why Do People Cyberbully? (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://www.deletecyberbullying.org/why-do-people-cyberbully/

Neo, C. (2014, March 14). Anti-harassment laws to fight 'social scourge' Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/anti-harassment-laws-fight-social-scourge

Singapore Children's Society - Bully-Free Campaign. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://www.bullyfreecampaign.sg/cyber_bullying/index_cyber.php

Singapore is the Second Highest Nation of Cyberbullies. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://familyandlife.sg/Nurture/2014/03/Singapore_Second_Highest_Nation_Cyberbullies

Essay Draft 1 - Countering Cyberbullying in Singapore

With the advancement in technology and the availability of the Internet infrastructure in Singapore, social networking becomes accessible to almost everyone. Social media serves as a platform for virtual networkings. However, it is increasingly used by teenagers to express their discontentment over others. A worrying trend has prevailed, such that more teenagers are involved in cyberbullying. Research has shown that Singapore recorded the second highest cases of cyberbullying among teenagers (CITE). To counter this problem, various measures were implemented by the government. Nevertheless, while corrective measures that have been introduced such as anti-harassment laws and counselling is crucial, preventive measures through education at home and in school remain the most fundamental solution to suppressing cyber-bullying among teenagers in Singapore. 

Various corrective measures by the government to alleviate the problem have been introduced. Corrective measures focuses on rehabilitating the victim and offenders of a cyberbullying incidents. The anti-harassment laws, passed in March 2014 by the parliament, aims at countering cyberbullying. It emphasises the importance of protecting possible victims against harassment by outlining proper cyberspace conducts and punishments for those who breaks the law (CITE). This law allows the authority to exercise jurisdiction against offenders through corrective measures such as fines and jail sentences, depending on the severity of the bully. On top of that, the government also works closely with social support groups to rehabilitate cyberbully offenders. It includes counselling and medical treatments for repeated offenders who are believed to have underlying mental problems. In schools, counselling help are provided for the victims and the offenders who are involved in cyberbullying.

However, such corrective measures only provide short-term solution to the problem. It does not necessarily prevent cyberbullying from reoccurring. This is because research has shown that the reason as to why these teenagers engage in cyberbullying is because they were either victims themselves or have seen someone close to them being bullied through cyberspace (CITE). On top of that, some offenders mention that cyberbullying allows them to project their power and superiority over the victims. They derive pleasure from the sufferings of their victims. To make matter worse, cyberbullying offenders often remain anonymous. All these complicate the effectiveness of corrective measures as discussed above since it ignores the motivational factors that drive these teenagers to engage in cyberbullying.

Preventive measure is therefore crucial to get to the baseline of this problem. This is because it offers a mechanism to prohibit cyberbullying from happening. One of the most fundamental aspect of preventive measure is education. Educating the social media users about the cyberspace ethics and restrictions, particularly the teenagers, allows a friendly and safe cyberspace environment. The government, together with the Singapore Children's society for instance, has introduced bully-free campaigns to educate and nurture teenagers to be ethical cyberspace users (CITE). This campaign also seeks to create awareness of the worrying trend of cyberbullying, and it calls for the involvement of the family and the community to counter cyberbullying. On top of that, the Ministry of Education (MOE) introduced the Cyber Wellness programme in schools, where "students learn to respect others by thinking through what they publish online so that they do not hurt others" (CITE). 

Such efforts, however, requires constant reminders and commitments for it to be effective in the long run. One might even argue that education in school alone is insufficient. It requires education and regulation at home. Parents could play a part by monitoring their children's cyberspace behaviour and also detect if their children is a victim of cyberbullying, so that early help can be provided. On the part of the individuals, they should also be committed to observe proper cyberspace ethics. Individuals should not respond to any cyberthreats and get immediate help if they fall in the victim's trap.

In conclusion, there is no solitary measures that could best counter cyberbullying. Nonetheless, we can argue that preventive measures is more fundamental in dealing with this problem. Preventive measures serve as a first-step in suppressing cyberbullying. Every agent in the society have pivotal role to play. Countering cyberbullying is therefore a joint effort among the state, the community, the family and the individual.