Introduction
Learning is an important aspect of life, and should therefore be nurtured at all levels of life. The process of learning is such that it impacts skill and knowledge on the learner, and these are normally useful at some point in their lives. In order for a learner to keep track of their learning curve, it’s advisable that learners perform an objective evaluation of their knowledge, skills as well as attitudes in order to establish whether such learning as had any positive impacts on their lives (Moon, 1999,. The art of personal and objective reflection has been fronted by behavioral psychologists as the single most important learning aspect that can be imparted on learners.
This paper is my honest and objective evaluation of my skill, knowledge and attitudes that I have developed during my time a student at the London School of Business and Finance as well as other areas where I have been engaged in the last two year. The aim of this reflection is to establish the positive impacts that learning has had on my person and also explain the steps that I personally intend to take in order to overcome the weaknesses and shortcomings that will be identified in this study.
Personal experiences of education and training in the last two years
I must begin that for the two years period covered in this reflective journal, I have been a student at the London school of Business and Finance, one of the most prestigious universities in the world, and I must say that my experience has been wonderful. The university is set in a serene environment that is very conducive for learning, and our lecturers and professors are committed to imparting the much needed knowledge in our lives.
Besides the excellent student life that is offered at LSBF, I have taken a number of course modules that are part of my curse requirements. Some of the most notable ones included global environment, marketing, finance, business strategies among others. I must state here, that I enjoyed all these modules as the mode of instruction was very interactive and I got to ask as many questions as I could in all these modules.
During the summer break, I took up an internship program with the KazMunayGas Company, a state owned oil and gas company in the state of Kazakhstan. Here, I learnt a lot of important things about the operations of the company and by extension the oil industry in the region. As n intern, I was exposed to many of the companies departments as the supervisor wanted me to learn as much as possible in that short period of time and by the time I was done with the internship, I must say that I had learnt a great deal about corporate life and culture as well.
As earlier stated, I have been mostly in school for the last two years and I must say that it is a period of my life that I will remember for long time. The lessons taken and knowledge earned during this period are of critical importance to my personal and professional life in days to come. One of the most important aspects that I learned at the LSBF is having an open and global approach to life. I have learnt to look at life’s issues, not from my own point of view, but also in relation to a set of global perspectives that have been imparted in me at the culturally rich place, which is the university. The way I look at issues, the way I approach lives challenges and even my worldview has significantly shifted since I set foot at this university.
Professionally, I have learned great deal of skills that actually appeared very simple and universal at first, but that I have come to appreciate as they take a great deal of efforts to learn. Take for example communication skills. I thought that communication skills were some universal skills that one naturally possessed but after my interaction with others at the university and outside, I have come to appreciate that not everyone can be able to speak up and articulate their issues, a skill that I must say I have learnt in the course of my studies.
I also had the opportunity to participate in tasks that were very instrumental in building my problem solving skills, as well as time management skills. Some of these issues appear so simple and basic, but I have come to appreciate that not everyone can make a plausible decision given a circumstance and still not everyone can be able to solve a problem. These are skills that are learnt and therefore one needs to make some effort to gain the same as they are of critical importance in our lives.
During my internship at the national oil company, I learnt some very important lessons, that classroom education and real life experiences are always different (Hatton & Smith, 1995). While I had top notch education from one of the leading institutions in the world, I learnt that experience in the industry was very important as I could not perform some of the tasks until I had been trained by my supervisor. I also learnt that in the corporate world, one has to learn the ropes very fast as its very competitive place, and competition is everywhere and for everything.
An analysis of your current situation, demonstrating understanding of strengths and weaknesses including the underlying reasons
In an objective evaluation of myself, my strengths and weaknesses, I must begin by appreciating the fact that I have learnt a great deal in the last two years despite the obvious challenges that have been there over the times. I also want to point out that I have demonstrated a lot of strengths in communication and interpersonal skill, problem solving and decision making skills, time management and also by being an excellent student at the university. These things do not come easy and that’s why I have to appreciate this far that I have come.
In terms of my weaknesses, my colleagues have pointed out, time and again that I need to find my voice when I am making group presentations. I know that I am inwardly shy and not a good presenter especially when there is a large audience, but this is something that I am working very hard to overcome.
In other cases, I have noted that I do not work very well in groups or teams, and am more comfortable handing tasks on my own. While this is strength to some extent, my colleagues and lecturers advice that I need to be able to work well with others in group tasks as this is important in my future career endeavors. Besides these two, I believe that I have a strong personality and character in both my personal and professional life.
A development plan
In order to overcome the weaknesses noted above and also to maintain and improve on my performance in the next semester, I intend to do the following.
Conclusion
A personal reflection is very important as it enables the person involved to interrogate their experiences and note the lessons learnt and experiences gained (Kolb, 1984). It’s even very helpful when the in individual engages in an objective evaluation of their learning experiences as well as the lessons picked, strengths and weaknesses notes and the individual makes deliberate efforts to further on their areas of strength as well as overcome weaknesses in their personal or professional life.
References
Hatton,N. Smith,D. (1995) Reflection in teacher Education. Teaching and Teacher
Education. Vol 11 p33 – 49
Kolb, D. 1984, Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and
Development, Prentice Hall, New Jersey
Moon, J, 1999, Learning Journals: A handbook for academics, students and professional
development. Kogan Page.London
