Throughout my co-op work experience at Alida, I demonstrated critical thinking in various ways. One way I demonstrated this skill was by analyzing and critiquing the survey software and data analysis processes used by the company. I questioned and investigated how the software was being utilized and identified areas for improvement. I also suggested new features and designs to help improve the overall survey software.
Another way I demonstrated critical thinking was by seeking different points of view and evaluating them based on facts. For example, I had a conversation with other co-op interns from UBC and discussed their experiences and how it differs from mine. I also communicated with my supervisor and colleagues to get their perspectives on certain projects and processes. This allowed me to gain a more well-rounded understanding of the industry and helped me to identify the root cause of any problems that arose.
Furthermore, I demonstrated critical thinking by being creative and innovative in exploring possible solutions. I used science, technology and mathematics as a way to think, gain and share knowledge, solve problems and make decisions. I also evaluated solutions to make recommendations or decisions and implemented solutions that worked and checked to see if a solution works, and acted on opportunities for improvement. Overall, I believe that my critical thinking skills were demonstrated by my ability to assess situations, identify problems, and develop and implement effective solutions.
COMMUNICATION - Connect and engage with others (to share and develop ideas)
I ask and respond to simple, direct questions
In our robotics 11 class, we had to make a speedbot in groups of 4-5. Creating anything in a group involves asking and responding to simple, direct questions
COMMUNICATION - Acquire, interpret, and present information (include inquiries)
I can understand and share information about a topic that is important to me
During the constructing process, I had to understand and analyze the instructions in order to work together as a group and share our differing perspectives, ideas, and concerns.
I can present information and ideas to an audience I may not know
All of the people in my group were people I did not know before this class. And while I would like to think that we bonded throughout constructing process, the first few days were eerily quiet. I had to present information and ideas to the group of which I was not yet familiar with.
COMMUNICATION - Collaborate to plan, carry out, and review constructions and activities
I can work with others to achieve a common goal; I do my share
I contributed to a very solid of our speedbot. I helped analyze, troubleshoot, and problem solve when our group ran into a problem.
I can take on roles and responsibilities in a group
We all worked together to create a successful final product.
Not the final picture, but I thought that it was really cute so here it is:)
Why I choose this element:
My data visualization map is based on household food insecurity in Canada. I choose this data set because the numbers were so shocking. As a basic introduction, household food insecurity refers to a lack of or unstable access to food owing to budgetary restrictions. It is a severe problem in Canada that has a detrimental effect on physical, emotional, and public wellbeing, and is a significant financial burden to our healthcare system.
To put it a different way, “In 2017-18, 1 in 8 households in Canada was food insecure, amounting to 4.4 million people, including more than 1.2 million children living in food-insecure households.” (Household)
However, the biggest reason I ended up choosing this data set was because of how Nunuvets percentage is so disproportionate to the rest of Canada. While the rest of Canada sits at 10-ish percent, Nunuvet sits at a whopping 57%, and after doing more research on the subject I now know why. Nunavut’s disproportionate insecurity stems from historical issues as well as its isolated location. This is caused by the many areas in Nunavut, particularly Indigenous ones, which are remote, increasing the distance that products must travel to reach families.
In 2016, the cost of food in Nunavut was up to three times higher than in the rest of Canada. More crucially, a large number of households in Nunavut have a lower income, making the increasing food expenses even more difficult.
Why this design was used:
I choose to make a map because I thought that it can best represent the percentages while still being ascetically pleasing. The glass backing was chosen for its clean, non-distracting properties. I colored each province individually, paying close attention to Nunavut. If you look at the map, Nunvet’s color is the most eye-catching red I could find, signifying the “bleeding” families.
My Process (no one asked for this but I literally spent 3 days of my life working on this project so please just let me talk about it, thanks):
The array of height was achieved via painstakingly gluing pre-cut paper one by one. I bought 6 sheets of poster paper of dollar tree and then put them through my Cricut in order to make sure each layer is even. The height of each province was decided by the percentages listed above, ex. 12 layers for BC, and 15 for Newfoundland and Labrador.
Above is one layer of Nunavut that was cut by the Cricut machine. And beside it are some of the swatches I made to make sure the colors I wanted to use would complement one another
Oh and Nunavut… Words could not begin to describe my distaste towards it. The boundless islands alone took me a whole workday to individually glue together, needless to say, it was one heck of a headache.
Overall I am really quite happy with how this project turned out:)
Citations:
“Food Insecurity in Nunavut: An Ongoing Issue.” Canada Without Poverty, 1 June 2021, https://cwp-csp.ca/2021/06/food-insecurity-in-nunavut-an-ongoing-issue/#:~:text=The%20disproportionate%20insecurity%20in%20Nunavut,and%20market%20food%20%5B2%5D.&text=This%20means%20Nunavut%20residents%20are%20relying%20on%20costly%20market%20food%20more%20often.
“Household Food Insecurity in Canada.” PROOF, https://proof.utoronto.ca/food-insecurity/#foodinsecurity.
COMMUNICATION - Connect and engage with others (to share and develop ideas)
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