CInstructions: There are 11 journal entries in this document. You need to read them carefully and assess them by writing a critical comment below each one. You will be assessing it occurring to Kolb's Learning cycle. I have provided an example below, please ensure that you follow the same format. "How to" to provide feedback on critical friends reflective journal entries. It provides labels to use for each stage (A1, A2, A3, A4). It also provides a labels for Overall issues (B1, B2, B3) and an overall rating (C1). A1. Concrete Experience stage is complete and concise A2. Reflective Observation stage is evaluative or concluding A3. Abstract Conceptualisation stage is appropriately broad A4. Active Experimentation stage is specific and appropriate B1. All 4 stages are present and in the correct order B2. Reflection provides deep insight into a non‐trivial, relevant issue B3. Demonstration of reflective learning through a specific and relevant example C1. Overall Rating: Overall, I believe this reflection to be: The second item is the evaluation of that criteria using the following abbreviations: • VP = Very Poor • P = Poor • A = Adequate • G = Good • E = Excellent Example: A.1: G. Your concrete experience is very solid- you have documented the tasks you are required to complete very well, and you have also solidly recounted the assessments you have done through your studies well. A2: G. The correlation you have made between your concrete experience and your academic studies at university are very strong- it is good to see that you are able to reflect on your experience and make the link between the 2. My only complaint is that you have dwelt on the reflective observation at the commencement of your entry, rather than following the chronology of Kolbs cycle. A3: G. You have demonstrated a sound understanding of the need for abstract conceptualisation within your internship and your future studies/professional career. By attempting to set goals for your future studies (especially your capstone project), you have stressed the significance of combining a mixture of theory and practice when approaching engineering problems to develop sound solutions. Your own emotional response through your article (in which you deal with frustrations regarding your practical experience) is also an indication of the abstract conceptualisation you have detailed in your entry. A4: G. Your active experimentation documented in your journal article is also strong, because you have clearly identified how you tackled problems that arose when you were unable to develop an immediate solution to the problem. Although this lead to obvious frustration, as documented in your entry, you have set yourself some clear goals regarding how to deal with this in the future, which is great to see. I hope you are able to seek a position you desire where you can build upon your documentation skills in the future. B1: A. It was good to see that all 4 stages of Kolb's learning cycle are present in your entry, however, you seemed to place the reflective observation elements as an introduction to your entry. Whilst some also followed on from the concrete experience section of the report- your entry would be strengthened by using the chronology of Kolb's learning cycle. B2: G. Your reflection on the need for communication and documentation to be undertaken within an engineering setting is very strong, and a relevant issue that transcends all disciplines within engineering. B3: G. You have used specific and relevant examples well in your entry0 basing your entry around these examples using Kolb's cycle. C1: G. Overall, I believe this to be an insightful reflection which shows a good understanding of Kolb's learning cycle. Entry 1 Tags: P2.8 I have been continuing work with Qwik Form from my first internship, as it took me a while to find and that I am learning and enjoying working there. For my 2nd internship, I have been carrying out inspections at a 5 storey apartments with 1 level basement underground, coordinating crane schedules and filling out a site dairy will working alongside with a new site engineer. Since I haven't worked with the new engineer, I found it difficult to work out their method of working on site and what they were looking for when I carried out inspections and in the site dairy. At first I was writing what I thought was needed in the dairy entries, which I do not use the Kolb learning cycle, however, I was missing out on some important information such as who was working? How long? And where they finished at the end of the day? At time I had to talk to the contractor about the work that is carried out and their expected finishing time. Most of the time, they were fine telling me except for a few, which I had to get the new engineer to talk to them. because the new engineer telling me to add new info to the site dairy, I was about to record more info and valuable info that could get me out of trouble if the work isn't done correctly, on time or if the contractor isn't working to the schedule. By calling the new engineer to talk to some of the contractors, they learnt to give me the answers faster and easier, without the headache of calling people to get the answers out. I believe that I preformed quite well when working on the tasks assigned to me and happy that I dealt with unreasonable contractors in the manner I did. However, I did learn a lot of things with the new engineer as in, dealing with crane operation, which I did not have the opportunity to do so and what their expectations were for each site diary. And also, the design and construction work that is involved with ramps in car parks and basements. With any difficulty that I have to deal with, I had assistance and found my self-understanding the work better, which allows me to work harder so that I can learn more and achieve more for future work. I am going to continue to do the site dairies, crane schedules and continue to learn from the new site engineer. However, in the future, when a contractor is not cooperating, instead of calling the site engineer to help, I would call my boss to talk to them, to stop looking down at me for being young, which I have done in past jobs and found to be useful. Entry 2 Tags: P2.10 With unexpected of heavy rain, all work has stopped for Thursday, this made the following day a hard days for most workers and also a busy day. Unable to inspect work or deal with contractors for those two days, my work load reduces because of no working is being done, the site was closed. I was told to go to the office to help others with their paper work, but they wouldn't give the day off and I didn't ask them. In the office everything is in a faster pace that I'm use to. I began entering data rescheduling materials that were supposed to come in on Thursday, meetings for contractors to inspect the site. Once that was done for the rest of the day I was imputing data in a excel spread sheet on the amount of materials excavated on site, checking invoices, attended 2 long meetings with the designers and views drawings that have not been signed off for the construction site I have been working on. This has showed me that weather can hinder the progress of work on a construction site and cause me to double my work when it comes for the following work day. I watched the people in the office work at a fast pace and how they interacted so I would not act out of place, even though most of them didn't remember me and I didn't remember them, since it's been a while since I was in the office. However, that day showed me the paper work that go in engineering and learnt what happens with the paper work that I pass on. This has helped me see the administration side in an engineering firm and that being at a stage where I need to learn these kind f things to progress in the company. This has helped me to begin to work with others i the office, such as the designers. In the broader picture, I should get to know other engineers in the company to learn more or even to get a grasp of their work, which I believe will help me understand more. In future plans, asking my manager if i could work with the designers in the office or talking with the design manager if it wold be fine with him to spend a few day learning their work. If all fails, wait for another rainy day and offer to help the designs, which is when I'd show them how keen I am to learn and to work hard, hopefully would be a last resort, Entry 3 Tags: U2.E7 Since my last learning journal, I came across ethical problems that I had to face. While working on site, I noticed that one of the older workers had a bottle of VB on site, drinking it. Also, wearing appropriate PPE is essential and fairly basic these days of age. However, catching several people not doing so will cause a larger problem not only to themselves but to their families and to everyone on site, especially when cranes are working above. Knowing that it was illegal and if work cover or a union member found out, fined would be given like Santa Claus giving out presents and also the head foremen and the developers would receive that largest present of all. To avoid the problem, I approached the man with the VB and explained that it was illegal. At first he was annoyed of me approaching him, but when I can to explain the problems that he would face with work cover and the fines he would receive, he was reluctant to stop drinking on site. However, for those not wearing PPE continued to not wearing appropriate PPE which resulted in some of them receiving fines. Even though some of the people did not listen to, I was happy to see the old man stop drink and for my actions I was congratulated by my boss and the stakeholders for abiding the law and saving them form fines that would of exceeded $250,000. I knew I did the right thing and will continue and hopefully more people would see the problems and wear PPE. Entry 4 Tags: P2.3 Since my last journal entry, I have been trying to work with contractors and labours after I finish my work required from me. In the last three weeks, I have worked with concreters on small slabs and traffic controlling on small streets. I applied myself to work with varies contractors and labours, who are willing to teach me to expand my knowledge in the construction industry. As a site engineers, I need to know all kinds of works that are happening, need to understand their methods of work and to professionally assess all works currently done. While working with the concreters, I tested the concrete by doing a slump test, pouring the concrete and vibrating the concrete to specified requirements, on different small slabs. By working with the concreters, I learns how to assess the form work from their point of view, such as, the shape of the form work specified in the plans, if the form works is nailed in properly and sturdy, and will not leak water or concrete. Having worked as a form worker in the past, this has allowed me to further extend my knowledge, but also as an engineer, it will give me a better understanding of the work. Also, when inspecting the work that is currently undergoing, I will be able to find faults in the work, recommend possible solutions to errors made and anticipate mistakes from occurring. But applying myself to work with them, it has given me the confidence to approach workers on site, but also again valuable skill. In the future, I would have liked to work on bigger slabs and understands the procedure that goes with concreting columns. Beings a traffic controller for half a day on a small, quiet street, has also given me an insight in their occupation, even though I knew their work is significant to the industry and the safety of pedestrians. Being a traffic controller is easy when controlling cars, however, when a large truck comes through, the fun begins. As traffic controllers, we have to guide the truck in to make sure that they do not collide with parked cars, by signalling to the drive to go left, right or stop, which for one instance took us 20 minutes to guide a truck into the site. Part of the work is dealing with some abuse shouted at us when a truck is leaving out of the site. I did not think that abusive people treat traffic controllers in suck manner or just that I am unlucky. When those kinds of people came around, at first we would avoid confrontations or answering questions, however, later when they had to return, we would make the truck to go slower and then take a picture of the car if the driver does not stop shouting verbal assaults to be reported to the police, which shut them up. After working as a traffic controller, knowing their work has made me think of getting the blue card, which would be helpful when working on roads, with councils or companies focused on road construction. In the future, I would confront the angry drives to assist them in doing a U turn or to tell them to be quite before contacting the police. Entry 5 Tags: P2.4 With Qwik Form, each person was given a deadline to finish their assigned tasks. There is a strong level of communication between the workers and the mangers, which for most of the time they were easy going and optimistic. However, when the deadline was near and the work was not finished, some of the managers attitudes would change, becoming aggressive and they would begin to yell, which I had the pleaser of receiving for resting on a hot day. Once the work and a milestone have been accomplished, a BBQ was usually rewarded. This technique of management worked because employees ahead of the deadline as a motivation to work harder and would be happy to have a BBQ, which means that the work gets done and ahead of time. Also, they would work harder the next day as their moral to work would be high as they know the bosses care about them. However, having experience the screaming and have confronted certain managers about their aggression onto others in a harmful way but did not reported them. I found that aggression in communication should only occur in extremely rare situations and is not a good form of management. The reward system, even though it's a simple act of giving, I found it to make the employees happy and eager to work the next day, which is a technique that I would like to use in the future. When confronting the bad managers, I think I should have done it earlier and should of anticipated managers coming down to yell. From this, I would use certain aspects of management techniques as in remain calm and optimistic, and implementing a reward system for the employees. In the future, I should encourage others to stand up for themselves and not let their managers yell at them in from of everyone so that the boss would know what is happening and fix it before employees start quitting. Entry 6 Tags: P2.1 Throughout my internships and additional work experience, I have gained much experience from the different roles that I have been in. My first internship at Qwik Form was on site experience, which I had assistance from the site engineer, Supervisors and the foremen. Almost every day at work, I had to read site plans and drawings, ensuring that all tasks were kept on schedule and also pursuing contractors. My second internship with Qwik Form, I was given a chance at a senior role, which delegated tasks from an office environment, construction site, design work and enforcing safety throughout the site. At Burwood Council, I was given a management roles, maintenance and design work, which included working at the depot in an office environment and on the streets (field work). I have experienced privately owned company, public government organisations and had good and bad experience, which has influenced my decision on where I want to pursuer in the future. Working at Qwik Form, I felt that work was rushed to be done forced by the managers, which caused mistakes that had to be fix and some that I did not notice when inspecting. However, at Burwood Council, they had the old council mentality of working slow, which I am not use too. I was told by the workers to slow down because I was getting the job done too fast, and they could not keep up. Even though they complained to my manager, he did not asked me to change in any way and thanked me for doing a good job I believe that in both cases I was doing my best to get the work done and that's why my managers do not have a problem with my work method. Moving from a fast pace job to a slow pace job has taught me that there are many was to manage people and that organisational cultures vary significantly. This is an area where I have to improve on, adapting to new organisational cultures and different work methods. From these experiences, I have learnt to get to know the work methods of the company and understand the culture behind every organisation. To prepare for another similar situation, I believe a good start would be to go on their web site and read about their culture and slowly to get to know everyone before working with them. As in, have a conversation with them to know them better and get their understanding of the company .After I graduate, I would like to work for a larger public company, as the work method differs from small and public organisations. The culture with also differ significantly and even the work methods. Entry 7 Tags: P2.2 To find my first internship was extremely problematic to securer, as I applied to companies through I2MS, job seeking web sites, UTS career board and cold calling. For many months I had no luck, until one day when I was work with relatives as a cement render in Burwood. I started to converse with a senior manager from Qwik Form and after a few days working alongside him, he offered me a job, which only shows that talking to people can help and making connections. I secured a position at Burwood Council in a very different way. A friend of mine was quitting and referred me to his manager, as I was looking to work in a council. Before I received the job at Qwik Form, I watched and question others around me, such as family, friends and other students, who were finding jobs. I would ask them how they found it and what helped then land their job, which helped me when talking to people, as in asking the right questions and talking to the right people. I found that my first internship was difficult to secure due to the lack of experience. However, during my second internship with Burwood Council, it was easier to secure as I have the experience to back me up. Both of my managers have told me the same thing that they prefer someone that does not have a high distinction average, as they have found that those students have a hard time to assimilate with others in the work place. This makes me think that some companies prefer students with experience or high marks, which makes me a bit happier since my marks are not the best. From my understanding, it is the person, if they are willing to learn and work with others And can show that they are different, they have a better chance of getting the job. In the future, different ways to improve my job seeking skills is to not focus into one area, branch out into other jobs because having connections in the industry is what helps you achieve your dream job. Attending job classes at UTS that help in refining resumes, cover letters and interviewing skills are a great way to improve my skill. Also, I will be attending APESMA's mock interview workshops that they have, to figure out the problem that I have when it comes to interviews. Entry 8 My communication and social skills have developed exceptionally, having worked and socialised with a wide range of people. While working at Burwood Council, I found it easy to communicate with the workers. For certain job, I would talk to them on what needs to be done and come to an agreement for a realistic completion date. For larger jobs, a folder is required that consists of a scope of works, calculations for the job, emergency numbers, dial before you dig planning and procedures, a start date and finish date. This made it simple for me to communicate because the work was organised in a straight forward manner and easier to explain to them. However, when a resident want to find out information about the job, at times I would buckle because my manger or contractors would be there and I did not want to look like a rookie. When a resident asks questions, it's usually about how it's going to impact them, why is it happening? Why didn't you do it before? Why the council charging me so much? And so on. At the start I let my manger deal with them and watched him deal with them with easy. After a few time, I realised that when it comes to residence, I have to explaining it similarly to a twelve year old, using simple language and little engineering jargon. Sometime, stating standards or local government law answers certain design questions that they have, which I learnt from listening from my manager. After a while talking to several residence, it became easier to answer any question that they might have. In the broader picture, this has helped me to communicate with a wide range of people, since each individual has a different way of thinking and understanding the work or the world around them. Knowing how to communicate with residence in a simple manner, which would greatly assist me when dealing with clients, since client would not understand all the jargon used in engineering. Also, it would others to understand what I am talking about, even family and friends. In the future when I have clients asking question, these situations will allow me to explain and answer the questions precise and clearly to them. I think public speaking activities and attending public speaking seminars conducted at UTS will greatly help me in being more confident in front of others, in presentation and speaking in public. Entry 9 Tags: P2.6 During both of my internships, a set ethical conduct that all employees adhered by and was constantly reminded to all employees. However, when deciding between right and wrong, every situation can differ, resulting in a different outcome. Throughout life, each individual's ethical framework is moulded by life lessons and interactions with others around them. In a workplace, the ethical framework of each employee would have be positively shaped, in most instances, and having a professional environment. Interaction between employees during both of my internships had been in a positive and professional matter; however, like any other places confrontations were inevitable. However, during my second internship at Qwik Form, I had a confrontation with an employee over a misunderstanding, which he was not reluctant to resolve. At first, we both stood our ground, even though it was a small misunderstanding. After a while, I realised this was not going anywhere. I lowered my pride in hopes that we can resolve this issue. He did not agree with me that it was a simple misunderstanding and continued arguing, which started to distract me while I worked. I approached my manager to resolve this issue and to put a stop to this dispute. My manager informed me that since he was not achieving what was required from him and distracting me from working, if I wanted to put in a formal complaint. I thought about it and realised that it would not help either of us and it would make working together worse. After he had a conversation with my manger, he later returned and apologised for arguing a meaningless misunderstanding. If we continued to argue, we would not finish our work, which would further frustrate us The outcome of this situation came better than I expected because I thought he would file a complaint against me, making me look bad, which will be intolerable to work with him as I would of have seen him as an enemy. Seeing what I did and how I acted in front of him, if I lowered my pride from the start and didn't perform the way I did, this situation would not have escalated to what it became and everything would have been for the better. I was glad that I did not put forward a complaint, as it is not my problem how others perform at work. However, going to my manger I believe it made me look childish as I could not resolve my own problem and that I got myself caught into an argument with another person. Arguing with another person is an experience that I do not like having, as it make enemies and not friends. I will take this as a lesson that aggressive behaviour is not a constructive form of working out problems. Next time when dealing with similar people, I would not get myself into an argument and consult others for help or going to my manager to find any error that I did or that I found. Entry 10 Tags: U3.E8 Communication is an essential part of our work life, from having a discussion in a meeting room organising a new register database to simply ordering a coffee. Communication is how we carry ideas across to others, and to understand what is wanted or required of us. At Burwood council, I was a part of a maintenance audit team, where I and other engineers took notes and photographs of the footpaths, roads, kerb and gutter. This audit involved validating and verifying the extent of maintenance activities undertaken on site and the level of compliance with statutory requirements. The process includes the review of documentary evidence, inspection of the site and witness of operational tests carried out in accordance with council's Maintenance Audit Procedure. This document is used as tool to communicate to council personnel in the chambers; the tasks needed to be done and gives us an understanding of how much of our maintenance budget is allocated. I was given the responsibility of being the report compiler where, essentially, I wrote the entire report using the notes and photographs taken and applying them to our maintenance audit template. I thought this was a great opportunity to learn how to compile a professional internal document, which can only be learnt through practice and feedback. Compiling the report took me a few attempts as there were mistakes with professional language, incorrect terminology and unclear information. This was all understandable as this was my first experience writing a report like this, also including the fact it was a mechanical based report. These corrections were vital in my learning experience of writing a document to effectively communicate ideas. In my second maintenance report that I compiled, it was evident that my report writing skills had greatly improved as I was required to make minor changes just once before the document was finalised. Entry 11 Tags: U2.E6 When overseeing the construction of a playground being installed into one of the many parks in Burwood, it was very important initially in the design period to create as safe an environment as possible, seeing as children are at a higher state of danger when running around and not paying too much attention to possible hazards. When looking at the project after completion with the Project Officer in charge, we had the chance to examine it and talk to the person in charge of the safety of the project. It became apparent to me that there were some hazardous rocks near a climbing apparatus, unsure of my position on if I was allowed to say anything that might jeopardise the project I didn't want to say anything but ultimately did because I believed it to be wrong to stay quiet about this issue. Fortunately when I did, nothing negative happened to me such as being subject to hostility from co-workers involved in the project or the project being stalled due to corrective work needing to be done. This issue had already been addressed and calculated that there was enough distance between the two objects that it would be safe for children using the park. This experience gave me the confidence to voice my opinions when I believed I had something valuable to contribute which I further helped to contribute corrections to a proposal my manager was to submit during a meeting on maintenance reviews where he had left out pictures of the site, which would have assisted workers on the site to locate the issues quicker. This showed my developing ability to deal with ethical issues by recognising an unethical situation and taking appropriate action. In this situation I recognised an unethical situation and reported it demonstrating an indicator of dealing with ethical issues. This situation also demonstrated my ability to consider safety issues relevant to engineering activities.