Reflection 1

My reflection on 1st meeting

Our first meeting went well. Almost everything was thoughtful and well made. The chairman opened the meeting by introducing the main things about the problem ; he tried to tell us how to fix it. He was giving the orders and making our work clear. The secretary did well too; he was writing down everything we said. His ideas in solving the problem were excellent too. The participant  helped us  a lot in organizing the meeting; his ideas were supportive and his points of view were excellent. I have learned from this meeting how to set the meeting and how to solve a problem by sharing ideas.

Meeting Assessment 1

LSEC N101 Meeting Assessment Section: CEK

Date of meeting: Monday 7^th March, 2011

Time of meeting: 4:30 p.m.

Venue: ADMC Room W006

Group members:

Chair: Jassim Alhammadi

Minute taker: Omar

Participants: Salim

Venue preparation:

Table and chairs for 3 people

Water for 3 on table

Tea, coffee and biscuits

Agenda:

1. The problem is a worldwide issue

2. The solution from the first place

3. Children need to learn at home and school

4. People need to be aware of the effects of drugs

5. Parents need to look after their children and them to find jobs

6. Governments worldwide should enact laws to minimize the effect of drug abuse

Objectives:

- Billions are spent internationally preventing drug use

- Addicts cannot function as normal members of society

- The neglect weakens their family.

- It requires expensive treatment.

- Huge police resources are needed to fight smuggling and dealing.

- Criminal gangs and mafia develop with drug money

Solutions:

v Control the area where crops are grown to make drugs

v Children need to learn at home and school

v People need to be aware of drug effect

v Parents need to look after their children and help them to find jobs

v Governments worldwide should enact laws to minimize the effects of drug abuse

Discussion:

§ 0mar said that he agrees the problem is a world issue because every country has been facing this issue for long time. And Salim thinks that the problem is worldwide because the mafia is trading in many countries. Jassim agrees too that the problem is worldwide because the world's governments are trying to overcome this problem.

§ Regarding the solution from the first place, Salim thinks that in every serious problem like this you should start at the very beginning of it to fix it. Omar didn't say much about that and totally agreed with Salim. But Jassim thought that it's not always the first place that is the solution because the problem is very big.

§ Jassim agrees that teaching children at home is a good solution but it needs a long time. If so we shouldn't leave it like this and we should also focus on the young people too. Salim said if the students know the harm of drugs they will not use them. Omar said teaching children at home is of prime importance.

§ Jassim liked the idea that people should be aware of the effects that many drugs can cause. Salim agreed that the harm of drugs can be on all community members, young or old. That’s why all should be aware of that. Omar thinks that even if all people know the effect of drugs, it will not stop them. This is not a good solution and had nothing to add.

§ Jassim thinks that the laws now are good and the governments don't need to enact more laws. Salim agreed but said we need laws to minimize the problem and this should involve the UN and should be worldwide. Omar agreed because the laws right now are not good enough to face this huge problem. What we should be wary about is whether new laws would be good laws.

Tips for presenters

.      Don’t memorize your presentation. Make brief notes to guide you.

2.      Practice many times.

3.      Relax, take a deep breath, and wait until the audience is quiet.

4.      Speak loudly and clearly, and use your voice for stress and emphasis.

5.      Make eye contact with the audience as you speak.

6.      Use gestures to show meaning. Make them slowly and clearly.

7.      Use simple visual aids that everyone can see.

8.      Don’t say, “Finished.” or “that’s all.” Smile and say thank you.

9.      Think about how you can do better next time.

The 2 most important ones for me:

·         Speak loudly and clearly, and use your voice for stress and emphasis.

·         Make eye contact with the audience as you speak