Developing life changing soft skills for university students

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY SKILL DEVELOPMENT REPORT DEVELOPING LIFE CHANGING SOFT SKILLS FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS Group 10 Class PPHE101(1+2 2/2021)CLC 3 Academic year[.]

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY SKILL DEVELOPMENT REPORT DEVELOPING LIFE-CHANGING SOFT SKILLS FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS Group : 10 Class : PPHE101(1+2.2/2021)CLC.3 Academic year : 2020-2021 Lecturer : Ph.D Pham Thi My Dung Ph.D Hoang Anh Duy June, 2021 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY SKILL DEVELOPMENT REPORT DEVELOPING LIFE-CHANGING SOFT SKILLS FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS Group : 10 Class : PPHE101(1+2.2/2021)CLC.3 Academic year : 2020-2021 Lecturer : Ph.D Pham Thi My Dung Ph.D Hoang Anh Duy June, 2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION I, Rationale II, Objective III, Scope of study LITERATURE REVIEWS I, Definition of soft skill II, Basic soft skills Time-management skill Teamwork skill Communication skill Presentation skill 10 III, Importance of soft skills 10 IV, Where to get soft skills? 11 METHODOLOGY 13 I, Approaches 13 II, Procedure 13 FINDINGS & ANALYSIS 15 I, Story 15 II, Analyze the story 16 III, Applied skills in video-making process 18 Time-management skill 18 Teamwork skill 18 Communication skill 19 RECOMMENDATION 20 CONCLUSION 21 APPENDIX 22 REFERENCES 23 ABSTRACT Soft skills are skills that are not associated with professional knowledge but related to human intelligence, personality, and emotions As a matter of fact, soft skills are essential elements in work and life It is our group’s honor to learn necessary skills, which are Teamwork, Communication, and Time Management in the Skill Development Class of Mr Hoang Anh Duy and Ms Pham Thi My Dung This course also gives us a wonderful opportunity to put knowledge gained into practice by doing a video project about how soft skills change our lives The idea for our video stems from a real situation in our macroeconomics class Some of the teams in our class made a failed presentation for their mid-term test and could not get a high score We realize that the failure is due to the lack of essential soft skills It is wondered why some students have been taught about soft skills but still can not apply them in their studies, as well as in life One of the main reasons is the fact that they barely practice it Our video project will tell about the changing process of a group of students with different personalities but they have one thing in common: the lack of crucial soft skills Through the video, we would like to deliver an important message: “Learning soft skills is an active process We learn it by doing And only by doing, can it change our lives.” In this report, we would like to present how the video has been handled to finish The following parts will be about Introduction, Literature ReviewS, Research Methodology, Findings and Analysis, Recommendation, Conclusion, and Appendix INTRODUCTION I Rationale It is believed that skills play a crucial part in our life Students nowadays usually apply hard skills easily and efficiently, however most of them can hardly use soft skills effectively under specific circumstances even though some schools and universities have recently started teaching personal as well as interpersonal skills besides traditional subjects Having acknowledged this, our story aims to raise people’s awareness of the importance of these skills in improving our own growth II Objective Generally, our objective is to successfully reflect the most common cases of the youth being extremely passive when in need of applying soft skills This would remind each of us of the issues we and the people around have to face frequently, therefore we can take a deeper insight into those problems and find a way to resolve them This does not mean that there is only one way for everyone to tackle, but the fact is that each individual should take an appropriate measure We hope that after watching this video, you will see the dilemma we are trying to put you in, have a motivation to win it, and use your knowledge to avoid it as well as to help other people III Scope of study - Execution time: From May to June, 2021 - Location: Members’ houses, Messenger app, Teams app - Implementer: 10 members of Group 10 from class English 01, 02 and 03 Highquality International Business Administration – PPHE101.2 (57-2/1819) - Video length: 14 minutes and 59 seconds - Language: English - Report: 23 pages (including cover pages) LITERATURE REVIEWS I Definition of soft skill Nowadays, soft skills are a crucial aspect to decide the success or failure of any people, especially in work and profession Soft skills (also known as social skills) is a term related to emotional intelligence that refers to essential life skills such as communication skills, communication & presentation skills creative thinking skills Alison (2020), stated that soft skills relate to how you work Soft skills include interpersonal (people) skills, communication skills, listening skills, time management, and empathy, among others Hiring managers typically look for job candidates with soft skills because they make someone more successful in the workplace Someone can be excellent with technical, job-specific skills, but if they can't manage their time or work within a team, they may not be successful in the workplace II Basic soft skills Time-management skill Time management is the practice of meticulously planning and organizing time for each specific activity until all objectives are met Because time is limited, the more effective your time management abilities are, the more time you will have The efficiency of time management is measured by the outcome of the task completed rather than the speed with which it was completed This process includes main steps: - List and prioritize tasks by day, week and month based on goals and work and life orientation - Measure and estimate the time it takes to complete the set tasks - Make a detailed plan, determine the order of priority to work each day - Implement and stick to the set plan Each of the above time management steps has tools, techniques, and skills to help form an effective time management process that is suitable for the nature of each person's work and life What you need to is know how to use tools to support effective time management (Indeed, 2021) Here are some common tools used to manage time: • Deadline: A deadline is a time or date before which a particular task must be finished or a particular thing must be done Use the deadline for every task of your work or your study, then make sure you not pass that, the result is you will not miss or delay any tasks of your work This is the most common tool that many companies and schools use to manage the time or the process of the job • Timetable: It’s very common for people to have a timetable for their job and school, but the majority of people ignore the potential of it If you can make a detailed timetable, you can make your work in time management a lot easier There are some apps nowadays that help you to make your Timetable optimal and effective such as google calendar, Trello, sunrise, etc 16 Finding Glory • The priority matrix (SWOT, Eisenhower): It enables you to work out what to first, and what can be left either until later or not done at all For example, if you leave an urgent but unimportant task, you may find that it becomes unnecessary Teamwork skill Teamwork is also known as group work Refers to the process of coordination, interaction, and collaboration between two or more people in the same organization By dividing the common work into smaller parts, each person will be assigned the right task with their expertise or strength to complete the work quickly and with high efficiency The members of a Team often share the same expertise Working well in a group entails: - Working well with a group of individuals to reach a common purpose or end; - Attending to the needs of other team members; - Considering everyone's thoughts, not just your own; - Working for the good of the entire group; - Having a say and shouldering some of the blame; - A successful team is one in which each member's unique abilities and strengths contribute to the team's success (Youth Employment UK, 2020) Communication skill Communication is a process of exchanging information between senders and receivers to achieve goals Perhaps the most crucial life skill is the ability to communicate effectively It is what allows us to communicate with others and comprehend what is said to us To appreciate how fundamental the desire to communicate is, just watch a baby listening carefully to its mother and trying to imitate the sounds she makes At its most basic level, communication is the act of transmitting information from one location to another It can be expressed verbally (using the voice), written (using printed or digital media such as books, magazines, websites, or emails), graphically (using logos, maps, charts, or graphs), or non-verbally (using symbols, maps, charts, or graphs) (using body language, gestures and the tone and pitch of voice) According to Masterclass (2021), learning to communicate effectively is a simple procedure that helps you to express yourself while also improving your personal and professional relationships Knowing how to listen carefully and clearly will aid you in expressing yourself in job interviews, business meetings, and in your personal life The “ABC principle” in communication: • Accuracy • Briefvity • Clairity The 7Cs (5Cs) in communication: Clear: The message should be clear and easily understandable to the recipient The purpose of the communication should be clear to sender then only the receiver will be sure about it The message should emphasize on a single goal at a time and shall not cover several ideas in a single sentence Correct: The message should be correct, i.e a correct language should be used, and the sender must ensure that there is no grammatical and spelling mistakes Also, the message should be exact and well-timed The correct messages have a greater impact on the receiver and at the same time, the morale of the sender increases with the accurate message Complete: The message should be complete, i.e it must include all the relevant information as required by the intended audience The complete information gives answers to all the questions of the receivers and helps recipient make better decisions Concrete: The communication should be concrete, which means the message should be clear and particular such that no room for misinterpretation is left All the facts and figures should be clearly mentioned in a message so as to substantiate to whatever the sender is saying Concise: The message should be precise and to the point The sender should avoid lengthy sentences and try to convey the subject matter in the least possible words The short and brief message is more comprehensive and helps in retaining the receiver’s attention Consideration: The sender must take into consideration the receiver’s opinions, knowledge, mindset, background, etc in order to have an effective communication In order to communicate, the sender must relate to the target recipient and be involved Courteous: It implies that the sender must take into consideration both the feelings and viewpoints of the receiver such that the message is positive and focused at the audience The message should not be biased and must include the terms that show respect for the recipient Presentation skill Presentation skills are the skills you need in delivering effective and engaging presentations to a variety of audiences Presentation abilities include presentation structure, slide design, tone, and body language, and are required to make effective and compelling presentations to a wide range of audiences Presentation skills and public speaking talents are not limited to certain groups of people; anyone may give a solid presentation or conduct public speaking at a professional and outstanding level This, like most specialties, necessitates preparation and practice Presentation formats and purposes can vary greatly, for example, oral (spoken), multimedia (using multiple media - images), and so on Oral (spoken), multimedia (using various media - visuals, audio, etc), powerpoint presentations, short impromptu presentations, long planned presentations, educational or training sessions, lectures, and simply giving a talk on a subject to a group on a voluntary basis for pleasure are all examples of presentation formats and purposes (Alan, 2020) III IMPORTANCE OF SOFT SKILLS Most managers and employers complain that young employees are too weak in soft skills, unable to meet job requirements despite having very good qualifications 80% of an individual's success is due to soft skills, not hard skills In fact, the training of soft skills has not been included in the mainstream curriculum in schools, while its importance has been paid little attention by students accounting principles course As a student, in addition to mastering professional knowledge at school, you need to be aware of the importance of soft skills right from the time you sit in school 10 Employers place a great deal of importance on soft skills, because studies show that they are a very effective measure alongside traditional job skills or so-called hard skills So if you possess soft skills, that is an advantage before employers If there is a lack of soft skills, it will lead to the risk of job loss and at the same time difficult to get a promotion at work Dom (2019) said that: “Soft skills refer to both character traits and interpersonal skills that will influence how well a person can work or interact with others The term soft skills covers a wide range of skills as diverse as teamwork, time management, empathy and delegation The importance of these soft skills is often undervalued, and there is far less training provided for them than hard skills such as coding Organizations seem to expect people to know how to behave on the job and the importance of skills such as taking initiative, communicating effectively and listening, which often is not the case.” IV WHERE TO GET SOFT SKILLS? Because of their rising importance, the need to teach soft skills has become a major concern for educators and employers all over the world We can identify two methods of learning or improving soft skills One way is enrolling for formal training, e.g taking evening classes, languages, presentation skills, conflict or cultural management This is a well-proven concept with the advantage of having some kind of certificate at the end of the course, which might come in handy for job applications The slight sarcasm in the last sentence is intentional, because it is not always guaranteed that a certain course actually successfully enhanced a person’s soft skills The other way of acquiring soft skills we looked at is self-training, usually based on books and one’s own experiences Changing personal traits often requires long-term practice and therefore self-training might be more useful for learners Additionally, during the last decade another method of selftraining has become increasingly popular: Electronic Learning, usually abbreviated to e-learning Another very pleasant way of self-training one’s soft skills is frequent socialising with friends, colleagues and other members of society This may sound astonishing, but meant here is socialising consciously, i.e with the purpose in mind to enhance certain soft skills We know 11 already that in this way we can improve our small talk capabilities, but there are a lot more soft skills especially related to Communication skills, which can be practiced while chatting and discussing with others in an informal manner: e.g language proficiency in general, listening, discussing, etiquette, self-esteem, or body language 12 METHODOLOGY This case study attempts to contribute to previous studies by bringing greater clarity in understanding the method of working as a team In this study we used qualitative research methods, which means obtaining information and knowledge through actions, emotions, communication and some conflicts I Approaches The way we approached the topic was making a video about a conflict among the members of a group when cooperating online due to the pandemic as well as each member’s mistakes in behaving in the work environment; both the filming process and the story gave the authors incredible knowledge about the problem and solution We decided to choose this topic because it is relevant to the young generation today, our information was summarized in real life as well as on television broadcasts Based on the data collected, a script was written and turned into a video where our members starred as the characters By doing role-playing, a technique that allows participants to explore realistic situations by interacting with others in a managed way in order to develop experience and trial different strategies in a supported environment, we could have our first-hand experience in the situation and propose realistic and possible solutions On the other hand, we filmed it online and recorded each scene based on digital platforms such as MS Teams and Messenger II Procedure In the process of completing the video and the report, all members of the group gave their own opinions and were really active in participating in the video The report was divided among each member of the group to research from various qualitative sources After finishing their parts, they put them into a docs and a member of the group placed the information in order The report was made after the video, so that it could be included in the research’s findings and analysis All members participated in the video clip as director, writer, editor, and actors They tried hard to learn their script by heart before filming, so our scene was very fluent The video clip was filmed on digital platforms and each member was at their home to make sure that we are safe Environment impacts how much or how little one communicates both verbally and nonverbally In an attempt to diminish any external, negative variables, the members endeavored to locate suitable 13 settings for the filming After the recording, the editor immediately edited the footage and started the recording for the clip The recording took days to film and was considered by the group members as a fast record and eventually, completed the video successfully 14 FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS Our project lasted for weeks, week for script preparations, days for filming, days for video editing, and day for rechecking overall All members were so eager to complete the task and we collaborated well We worked in a positive atmosphere and were always willing to give a hand to other members if they needed help during the working process However, we also had to deal with some difficulties Before the lockdown, our team prepared a different script that we can record together Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, students study from home, therefore, we have to start from scratch and change all the script The distance also makes it harder for us to find ways to record the video However, adversity produces the greatest opportunity Our team comes up with the idea that we can make a video about students using the Covid-19 background On top of that, each member had a chance to apply what we have learned in the Soft Skills Development class into practice throughout the process of making this video I Story The story tells about the changing process of a group of students with different personalities but they have one thing in common: the lack of crucial soft skills Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, students need to prepare for an online presentation to get a midterm score Team 10 consists of members with different personalities Firstly, The leader is an aggressive and authoritarian person but she just thinks that people are jealous of her because she has many achievements Secondly, The insecure kid is a person who always feels insecure and wants to stay in her comfort zone She is pretty scared of saying something wrong or speaking out her thoughts Therefore, she just hides by turning off the camera and the mic when studying online Thirdly, The overload often has too many things to do: the assignments, the online jobs, the housework, and so on She can not find a way to use her time effectively The last member is The playful She is the type of person that would spend half of the day sleeping and half of the day playing without thinking about her assignments What must be, must be The members lack such essential skills as time management, teamwork, and communication, therefore, they eventually created a terrible presentation, which made the teacher feel so disappointed As the students sincerely 15 apologized and begged for a remake, the teacher gave them a second chance for better performance After the completely failed presentation, the members suddenly realized that they were so careless and they needed to change themself or else they would encounter a lot of failures in the future They held a meeting and admitted their mistakes by themself The leader suggested that her best friend advised group 10 to review the lecture of Mr Hoang Anh Duy and apply all tips that we learned from the Skill Development class to solve problems All the members agreed that they were taught all these skills but no one has applied those skills in the working process So they will have to change it After seriously applying the tips from the skill development course, The Overload knows how to use google calendar to arrange her tasks and use Trello app to track them She uses her time more effectively and achieves a work-life balance The Playful starts doing the project seriously Not only does she list out her short-term and long-term goals with a mind map but she also uses a to-do list daily The Insecure realizes that she has to focus on both verbal and nonverbal communication That means she has to take care of her appearance to be more confident, practice body language, and apply the 7C rules before saying or writing something Step by step, The Leader becomes a more democratic leader who encourages ideas and no longer an authoritarian person After a lot of effort, they knew how to develop their soft skills and how to fix their problems Eventually, The team made a successful presentation and received instant recognition and tremendous compliment from their teacher Learning soft-skills is an active process We learn it by doing And only by doing, it can change our lives II Analyze the story - Time management skill: The Overload and The Playful seem to be prime examples of lacking time management skills The overload often has too many things to do: the assignments, the online jobs, the housework, and so on She can not find a way to use her time effectively Her lifestyle gradually becomes unhealthy, she feels that she just lives to work In contrast, The playful is the type of person that would spend half of the day sleeping and half of 16 the day playing without thinking about her assignments Her day is full of watching tiktok, films, surfing the internet again and again After reviewing all lessons and tips from skills development class, they become better and can manage their time effectively The Overload knows how to use google calendar to arrange her tasks and use Trello app to track them The Playful starts doing the project seriously Not only does she list out her short-term and long-term goals with a mind map but she also uses a to-do list daily She also lives healthily by doing exercises, studying a new language and having time for her positive hobbies By doing these, both of them can achieve work-life balance - Communication skill: The insecure kid is a person who always feels insecure and wants to stay in her comfort zone She is pretty scared of saying something wrong or speaking out her thoughts Therefore, she just hides by turning off the camera and the mic when studying online After chatting with The Playful, receiving her useful advice, she realizes that she has to focus on both verbal and nonverbal communication That means she has to take care of her appearance to be more confident, practice body language, and apply the 7C rules before saying or writing something Finally, she is the presenter for Macroeconomics presentation and obtains many compliments from her teacher as well as her classmates - Leadership skill: The leader is an aggressive and authoritarian person but she just thinks that people are jealous of her because she has many achievements When working with this team, she does not listen to other’s opinions, just decides on her own After the failure, she realizes what she lacks and resolves it She reviews the lectures from skills development class and step by step, the Leader becomes a more democratic leader who encourages ideas and no longer an authoritarian person As a leader, she knows how to write a proper email as well III Applied skills in video-making process Time management skill Time management skill played an important role in our work We put this skill into practice during the process of making this video Initially, we had planned to make a video and record all of the scenes together We had finished the script for our initial scenario We should have filmed it sooner, however, 17 due to other exams and our procrastination, we could not finish the film before the COVID-19 pandemic came back again in Vietnam Our initial plan could not be conducted Three weeks before the deadline of submission, we decided to make another plan with a new scenario We set the deadline for each task, delegated the tasks to each member, and followed it strictly In addition, during the process of visualizing a new scenario, each member of our team had to manage time effectively to keep our balance between making the video and preparing for other exams Some of our members made to-do lists and used Eisenhower’s Urgent/Important Matrix to manage time Teamwork skill Our collaborating process was a bit out of the ordinary due to the pandemic restrictions Fortunately, all members of our team had the same purpose and we had a lot of time cooperating in another subject, therefore, no conflict happened during the process of teamwork We had learned “Facts about geese” in the lesson of team-working skill of Mrs Pham Thi My Dung This lesson had inspired us deeply During the process of working together, we kept constant communication and encourage others The encouragement was crucial, especially when we had to change our scenario and begin again We also genuinely cared for each other’s well-being and supported each other while they had problems In the process of giving ideas and writing the new scenario, we used Google Meet and discussed directly, each individual contributed to the scenario and gave ideas Then, while some of our members recorded the scenes, other members found materials for editing the video Finally, we divided our team into two small groups, one group took responsibility for editing the video and the other took responsibility for writing the report Communication skill Communication skill helped us a lot in our cooperation However, during that process, communication among our team members was not always good We had tried to discuss the scenario via Messenger and realized that was not the proper method to convey our ideas 18 Then, we decided to have discussions via Google Meet to avoid misunderstanding We listened to each other’s ideas more carefully and tried to give our ideas clearly, accurately, and briefly At the end of the discussions, we repeated what we had reached agreement before allocating tasks to members Because of working online, a consistent connection with decent speed was a problem for us To solve this problem, we wrote down our ideas on a screen sharing tab and explained our ideas again after a lack of continuity 19 RECOMMENDATION When looking for ideas, we figured out that we wanted the characters to represent typical types of university students, especially freshmen who are new to this totally different environment They may either be overwhelmed or lose their direction, which makes it hard to get used to the undergraduate life without help Therefore, we bring a story that empathizes with them and encourages them to change for the better We want people to remember that there is always someone who can help, and as long as you devote yourself to become a stronger and more excellent version, there is always a way Secondly, we highly recommend that every student should invest their time in learning and practicing soft skills To show who you are in such a competitive world, a student has to hold many skills and abilities that every company calls for Mastering soft skills in colleges is not difficult for anyone as long as he or she keeps an eye on it and practices day by day These skills are helpful not only in schools and colleges, but also in developing career path as well as in social life Last but not least, the utmost lesson here is that soft skills can actually change our lives if you are certain and serious to learn them This is the key recommendation that we want to offer everyone through this video 20 ...MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY SKILL DEVELOPMENT REPORT DEVELOPING LIFE- CHANGING SOFT SKILLS FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS Group : 10 Class : PPHE101(1+2.2/2021)CLC.3... essential life skills such as communication skills, communication & presentation skills creative thinking skills Alison (2020), stated that soft skills relate to how you work Soft skills include... measure alongside traditional job skills or so-called hard skills So if you possess soft skills, that is an advantage before employers If there is a lack of soft skills, it will lead to the risk