Personalised Learning portofolio

PERSONAL DETAILS:
Galina Lopusin and Student Number
20004735
Module Leader: Cilliers Diedericks
 Table of Contents

Introduction..............................................................................................................................2
My weekly reflections..............................................................................................................3
Personal development plan......................................................................................................7
My goals................................................................................................................................7
Part 1 – Personal Analysis...................................................................................................7
Part 2 - Setting goals............................................................................................................8
Part 3 – Personal Objectives...............................................................................................9
Conclusion...............................................................................................................................11
References list.........................................................................................................................11
Introduction

The portfolio for the subject of personalised learning contains my weekly journal of
reflection and personal development plan. This portfolio was the perfect place where I
presented my thoughts and ideas for the analysis on the quality of personal development and
opening of new horizons in knowledge.

My diary contains 10 weeks, where each week I wrote what I learned, what will help
me in the future, and a summary of the lesson. This journal is an important tool because it
offers opportunities for development, organization, and the opportunity to reflect on positive
and negative events.

The development plan is divided into three parts. Each part contains information on
personal analysis (SWOT), goal setting, and proposed goals for three years. This plan is also
an important tool for my personal development, aiming to progress in the workplace and
achieve personal goals.

The last part of the portfolio is the conclusion, where the personal opinion and the
importance of the elaboration of this portfolio are exposed.
My weekly reflections

Week 1 was about “Module Introduction”. This week I learned about the course
structure and how it is structured. During the lesson, I understood that personalised learning
is a process that results in new knowledge, understanding, skills, or behaviour. The teacher
explained that I need to do a knowledge assessment by the end of the module. It is divided
into three parts: the first part is a journal, which I have to complete weekly about the
knowledge, objectives, and results, which will help me in my future. The second part of the
evaluation is about my learning and development plan, where I will learn what a development
plan is and why it is a useful tool to be successful in my future business. The third part of the
evaluation is the interview, where I will talk about my knowledge, skills, and motivation.
After I write the assessment it is necessary to upload it for feedback and note on the
Blackboard, which is an important tool where I can find learning materials and information.
In my opinion, this module is very important and I expect to learn how to be more efficient,
how to organise the agenda correctly, how to save time, how to improve knowledge, how to
get more involved in my studies to get good results.

Before we started the lesson, the teacher made a recap about the first week, in my opinion,
this is a good tool for organising, reminding, and focusing as much as possible on the assessment.

The second week was about “The Importance of Reflection”. I learned the importance of
reflection, how reflection can help me study, what reflection is, how it works and how to apply it
correctly in my life. During the lesson, I watched a video about reflection, after which I shared
with my colleague's opinions about what reflection is. Self-reflection is the method of reflection,
meditating, examining, and thoroughly considering one's behaviours, thoughts, attitudes,
motivations, and desires, according to the discussion. Personal reflection enables me to examine
life from both a global and micro level. Emotional intelligence, which I believed to be the ability
to recognise, use, and manage one’s emotions constructively to minimise pressure, communicate
effectively, overcome hurdles, and diffuse conflict, was an essential issue. I also learned about the
EQ model contains three important purposes: know yourself, choose yourself and give yourself.
The teacher spoke about the importance of feedback, which must be provided correctly and with
great care. The main schemes I have learned and to help me reflect on the future are Kolb's
learning cycle and Gibbs' Reflective Cycle.

My conclusion for the second week is: I want to continue learning because it makes me
feel more interested and prouder of myself.

The third week was about: ’’Personal SWOT Analysis’’. In this lesson, I learned how to
do a personal SWOT analysis, how to identify for myself Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities,
and Threats. It was new to me that when performing the SWOT analysis, I had to be fair and
critical with myself to know where to focus on personal development. I am sure that I will return
to the SWOT analysis because I am constantly learning new things. After performing the SWOT
analysis, I found out all the necessary details about myself, I found out what I can do for positive
changes that will lead me to new opportunities, to develop, to grow, and to increase my
preparation for my future career and ambition.

My conclusion for the third lesson is that SWOT analysis is the first step to success and
finding out new things about me.

The theme of the lessons from the fourth week was: Academic Writing. In this lesson,
I learned about the importance of academic writing and how to correctly formulate ideas,
arguments, and conversations. Academic writing is a work that is defined by evidence-based
arguments, the correct choice of words, and logical organization. In class, I studied different
forms of academic writing, for example, literary analysis, research paper, and dissertation.
For the academic assignment to be structured scientifically and professionally, I have
mastered the following steps, such as planning, research, reading and taking notes,
composing, reviewing, and editing. Finally, the assignment must contain an introduction, the
body of the text, the conclusion, and references. Indication of references is necessary to avoid
plagiarism. Also, the structure and arrangement of the assignment are necessary, I learned the
main rules of writing structure and page structure. Formal language must be used throughout
the work and not the one used every day. With the help of this topic, I know how to formulate
assignments in the next years of my studies.

The fifth week began with the topic: Writing skills. The difference between academic
writing and writing skills is the audience and the purpose of the writing. The ability to write
is an important part of communication. To become a strong writer, it is necessary to learn and
apply different methods of writing. In my opinion, the teacher explained the writing
techniques very professionally and gave examples. Narrative essay, writing style, writing
style, resume writing, and creative writing are the five writing skills. In this lesson I studied
before writing a paper, reflective writing, which is made up of reflective writing and non-
reflective writing, must be applied. I learned before writing an assignment it is necessary to
put into practice the reflection, to think, and to meditate correctly on the subject. I learned
that the following skills are recommended to be applied in the assignment: grammatical
ability, compositional ability, and field knowledge. During the lessons, I did different
exercises and I involved writing skills.

Conclusion: in this lesson, I improved my writing skills and I learned how to put my
thoughts in order.

The sixth week's lesson began with a recap and the topic was introduced: Introduction
to the UKCBC Library. In this lesson, I learned how to use the online library, how to use the
library, plagiarism avoidance, and references. On the library page I can find various online
resources for studying and writing assignments, for example, UWL Online Library, EBSCO
e-books, and e-journals, VLE Books, finding printed books, academic skills, and career
progression resources.

The topic for the seventh week was: Introduction to Plagiarism and Referencing. In
this lesson, I learned what plagiarism is and how it works. Plagiarism is a method of verifying
the resemblance to a work written by an author. The purpose of plagiarism is for people to
write original works. References are also important in the assignment and should be included
in the original because it is the contribution of other writers.

In conclusion, plagiarism is a way to combat copying the ideas of others without

interpreting in their own words, at the same time, plagiarism encourages every person who
when writing an assignment to make the most of their inspiration and knowledge. In other
words, the references show the reader of the paper where the sources were taken to write the
paper.

Firstly, during week 8 I learned how to make a presentation and why it is necessary.
Some of the positive things about this are: developing good verbal communication skills,
working together with other colleagues as well as the opportunity to do independent research.
The benefits of this are: it helps me to connect with more people, it makes me more
competitive in the business industry as well as more influential.
 Secondly, we have done some group activities regarding the good and bad things we
have seen about the presentation shown in the class and this has helped out to be more critical
when it comes to presentation and their details.

Thirdly, in the second part of the lesson, the main key points of a successful
presentation have been shown by the lecturer and what these involve. A few of the key points
to pay attention to when doing a good presentation are: body language is important, showing
interest in the subject, clarifying the aims of the presentation and whom you present to.
However, the skills of PowerPoint are also important or the other programs which will be
used.

The main topic of week 9 was interview skills & goal setting. The interview skills will
help me to improve my interviewing methods and to develop verbal confidence when doing
an interview. Why are these important? It will bring up my personal qualities, it will help me
to express myself in a good way with motivation and enthusiasm. As well as in the previous
week the body language plays an important role when attending an interview. A couple of
questions were given as the most popular examples for an interview and how we should
answer tips were provided by the lecturer, which I think are very helpful.

In the second part of the lesson, the benefits of the S.M.A.R.T question were
presented which allows me to improve the chances of succeeding in accomplishing a goal or
when doing an interview/presentation.

The 10th week was more about developing presentation and interview skills. As
keyword in this lesson was "employability" which means the skills, understandings, and
personal attributes which help us to get a job. Another aspect that was presented was career
development learning, which brings more benefits such as more self-awareness, motivation,
knowing how to present ourselves effectively, and making the right decisions about our
career.

In the second part of the lesson, we went through some of the generic/core skills like
problem-solving, attention to detail, working in a team, the ability to work under pressure,
and so on, as well as the competencies wanted by employers or what managers are looking
for when employing a new person.

As a result of this, we have been presented the idea of a PDP and why it's important.
Personal development plan

A personal development plan (PDP) is a type of self-evaluation and self-reflection

tool commonly used in higher education and business. It can, however, be a useful exercise in
your personal life (Putter, 2021).

My goals

The goal for the next few years is to start a business, organic pastry. The desire to
open such a business is that I want people to be healthy. To achieve this goal, I must obtain
the necessary studies and obtain a diploma from UWL. For this, I developed the development
plan where I used the SWOT analysis, but first of all, I did an audit of the skills, which
helped me to do the SWOT analysis.

Name: Galina Lopusin Degree pathway:

Student Number: 20004735

Part 1 – Personal Analysis

Personal SWOT Analysis

I performed the SWOT analysis and identified:

strength: attention to details; communication skills; good listener; positive attitude; total
involvement in my professional development; always ready for a new challenge;

weakness: sometimes I can't manage my time accordingly; I am afraid to speak in front of

a big crowd just because they will not understand me correctly or I will get myself lost; I
am not able to memorize all the information needed; hard to say 'no';

opportunities: new relationships with my new colleagues; receiving feedback from the
teacher on the work done; accessibility to all learning tools: online library, blackboard,
emails, modules, attendance, and the student hub; high standard facilities for students;
 all courses are well explained and structured;

threats: physical absence from lessons due to the coronavirus pandemic; technical
failures during assessments; no being able to be present at lessons due to work;

Part 2 - Setting goals

What do I want to What do I have to How will I measure Target date for
learn? do? success? review?
- Read the book
"The 7 Habits of
Highly Effective
People: Powerful
Lessons in Personal
Change" by Stephen
R. Covey;
- Registration for
the online course on
- Confidence that I can
the Reed Courses
plan the right time and
website
things;
Planning skills (www.reed.co.uk, 31.12.2022
- New knowledge;
n.d.).
- My motivation will
- Watch the video
be high;
on the TED channel
of how people
achieved success,
for example, Kirsten
Rohde
(www.youtube.com,
n.d.)
- Attendance at all
lessons;
Presentation skills - Register for the - I will feel free to 31.12.2022
 speak fluently and
quietly in front of a
online course on large audience;
edx.com (edX, n.d.). - I will set my goals
- Attending online correctly;
lessons, 4-6 hours - I will maintain eye
per week; contact with the
- Make notes and audience;
practice in class - I will obtain a
with classmates; professional certificate
in communication
skills;
- I watch various
videos on YouTube - I will have the ability
about "How to to listen to the person
improve your without interrupting
listening skills" the conversation;
Listening Skills 31.12.2022
(www.youtube.com, - I will remember the
n.d.) whole conversation;
- I listen to
colleagues and
teachers;
-I search Google for - I will be able to
information on how answer "no"
Refusing requests
to say 'no' in other professionally; 31.12.2022
words (Psychology - I will not feel guilty
Today, n.d.); for refusing to help;

In order to set the objectives, I followed the weaknesses established in the SWOT
analysis. I set out to meet the goals by the end of 2022 and achieve an excellent result. I had
an experience at the presentation, where I was part of a group and I was a little nervous, due
to setting goals in the future I will feel free and I will present at a professional level.
Part 3 – Personal Objectives

Short-term goals (next 12 months)

- I am able to plan everything correctly and on time;
- I present the presentations without any fear;
- I listen to people without interruption;
Medium-term goals (next 2-3 years)
- I will complete my studies and obtain a bachelor's degree from UWL;

Longer-term goals (beyond 3 years)

- I will open my own organic and healthy pastry business;
- I become a trainer in nutrition;

My goals set for three years are real and I will work every day to get results. These
proposed goals will help me achieve my professional goals. In the first years, I will focus on
obtaining skills and obtaining a diploma, which will also help me to open my own business,
an organic pastry shop. Due to my studies and my goal of opening such a pastry shop, there is
a need for courses in nutrition and health, these I propose to do online.
Setting personal success goals is guided by the SMART principle.
Conclusion

I am glad that I had the opportunity to study the subject of personalised learning and
to develop this portfolio. All the lessons were delivered at a high level of professionalism,
after each lesson I became more and more confident and focused on lifelong learning. I
understand that I must always focus on active study, I can say that I am confident in my
choices and personal development. For me, it is important to be a person open to new
opportunities and constantly growing.

This helped me to understand through the elaboration of the weekly journal, where I
reflected deeply on the self-development, I defined the strengths and weaknesses and I
understood that I have a lot to improve. The opportunities defined in the SWOT analysis for
me are the chances to know something new. Writing a weekly diary was a challenge for me
because I never tried to express my thoughts. As I reflected on this journal, I realized how
difficult it was for me and my thoughts to be.

In the development plan, I set the objectives I want to learn in an achievable time that
will offer me benefits for life and work. Due to these established objectives, I became more
ambitious to achieve them within the established deadlines. This plan will help me keep track
of my progress. I also set personal goals for a one-year period, in which I set out to improve
my skills, for which I set aside two days a week to learn. My plans for the next 3 years are to
finish my studies and open my own business, organic pastry.

In the future, I intend to maintain a balance in my personal and professional life. I am

sure that I will continue to use and improve my weekly journal and personal development
plan.

I can say that after finishing this course I became more organized, I improved my
development skills, I read more educational materials, I am more focused on the correct
management of my time and my goals.
References list

1. Putter, M. (2021). What is a personal development plan? [online] CPD Online

College. Available at: https://cpdonline.co.uk/knowledge-base/business/what-are-
personal-development-plans/.
2. www.reed.co.uk. (n.d.). Strategic Planning Skills Online Training Course. [online]
Available at: https://www.reed.co.uk/courses/strategic-planning-skills-online-training-
course/217751.

3. www.youtube.com. (n.d.). The gap between planning and doing | Kirsten Rohde |
TEDxErasmusUniversity. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=AzW2iKd-ITM&ab_channel=TEDxTalks [Accessed 8 Jan. 2022].
4. edX. (n.d.). Communication Skills Professional Certificate. [online] Available at:
https://www.edx.org/professional-certificate/ritx-communication-skills?
index=product&queryID=d518b7872c50bd65f487f25e152ea990&position=2
[Accessed 8 Jan. 2022].
5. www.youtube.com. (n.d.). How To Improve Your Listening Skills. [online] Available
at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6-MIeRr1e8&ab_channel=LitmosHeroes
[Accessed 8 Jan. 2022].
6. Psychology Today. (n.d.). Why Is It Hard to Say “No” and How Can You Get Better
at It? [online] Available at:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-couch/201601/why-is-it-hard-say-no-
and-how-can-you-get-better-it.