There's no "I" in TEAM

Through the course of the past three months, there is definitely a press for communication and interaction in group settings.  Within a group setting, there are perks in working in a group but there are also downfalls in working with such a large group of people.  I think I have a mixed experience when it comes to group work.   For example, in the academic setting of the University of California there isn’t a lot of push to work in a group to present a collective paper which all participants will receive the same grade as other members in the group.  On the contrary in my International Relation class for IS 08, we had to write a group research paper and as it came out,  work in a group of five people does not means equal work contribution.  As it is, I was working with another EAPer.  Although we finished our part prior to the deadline, we were yet again working on editing, formatting, and managing the quality of the paper as whole.  The distribution of work was a huge deficient in overcoming our task to provide a polished paper… However, upon receiving our grades I was shocked to received low marks because one of our members plagiarized or did not properly cite the source even though our instructor repetitively mentioned it.  Nevertheless, the entire group suffers the consequence as a whole.  As a result, I realized that group work in producing an academic piece is very difficult if your colleagues are not on same level of knowledge.  Language barrier would also be another problem that cannot help and the lack of communication will severely affect the final product.  Of course, that is only one bad experience in an academic setting where it was disastrous.

On a better note when it comes to UCHANU class, working in a group setting is definitely easier whether it is with UC or HANUers in the class.   From the first week when had to do Survival Hanoi to accomplishing Project Kiem An interview, it was a breeze.  I learned that group work is plausible only when there’s good communication and mutual understanding between members.   When it comes to working on Project Kiem An, we delegate task to each members and split the entire group into two groups and one person to edit overall which makes is quite effective.  By limiting confusion in a big group setting, the pair who is doing the two versions must communicate effectively to finish the task.  What I see as the most effective way is a systematic production line of work where it is— interview, transcribed, translate, edit, and submit.  I believe once each member understand their task in a group work, the entire task is that much easier rather than one person having to do all the work. 

The past week was another challenge to work with our classmates to raise funds for Nghe An.  Fundraising is definitely not an easy task that one person can achieve but it essential that everyone take part in it whether it is flyering or setting/cleaning up.  Collectively, we self-divide the work amongst ourselves which makes the entire task of fundraising more effective because we were each responsible for certain events.  As for me, I helped manage and prepared for the food sales on Tuesday and Wednesday.  It was quite a task when everyone has their crazy schedule but it comes to it, everyone was willing to lend a hand when we were in need. In my eyes, it was a success even though I barely had any sleep and was physically drained but it was for a good cause and it felt pretty darn good to accomplished it!  It was just fun hanging out and trying to sell food and drinks for a good cause and trying to reach out to other HANUers that I’ve never seen.  The fundraising task itself helps all of us – UC and HANUers to become closer than ever because we were able to hang out outside of the classroom setting.  I wished we started fundraising earlier or have more outside activities with HANUers.  NGHE AN = UC + HANU = SUCCESS! J

On a personal note, I believe that I learn more about myself in a group setting because I can either be the helper or organizer.  This is simply dependent on the situation at hand, if not one steps up to get things organized and prepared then I’ll be more than willing to delegate tasks for people to do in order make sure ever goes smoothly.  At the same time, when there’s too many people trying to lead a group, it would ineffective to have multiple leaders because it’ll be a mess to battle out who does what so I would not mind playing the supporting role.  In the end, the completion of the task is the main focus whether who leads is only a minor factor the larger scheme of things.  Therefore, I think working in groups actually makes it fun only if everyone is on the same page and willingly help one another.   A reliable team is essential in fulfill a goal and in UCHANU –we’re a BIG MEAN TEAM of successors!