Module 2 Reflection

I think the 3 things that struck out to me the most in Module 2 were
1) The discussion regarding Segmentation of target populations vs. Stereotyping
2) Health Literacy Report
3) Anh's "Zen" presentation

When someone brought up the point that segmenting/ classifying different groups within a target population is almost just like stereotyping, I initially wanted to agree. It seems unfair to group someone into one category/ title when they really mean so much more and can probably fit into multiple categories. But when it comes down to it (As Kristi pointed out in class), the goal is to reach as many people as possible. In order to do this, you need to identify key characteristics in different GROUPS that may pull them in, even though they aren't necessarily just a "jock" or "nerd" or "goth" (as in the TAAG projcet). This made me think twice about past commercials/ advertisements I've seen that seem TOO stereotypical or cliche. I realized that they do this to appeal to KEY characteristics that are within whatever population they are targetting. And that is what is effective.

As I talked about in last week's blog, the Health Literacy Report gave shocking facts about literacy in the US and the disconnect between the health provider and illiterate patients. There is definitely a need to "educate" and train health professionals so that they are able to communicate in lay terms without intimidating those in the hard to reach population.

Lastly, I thought Anh's presentation on "being zen" in presentation style and design was really interesting. I agree that often times, powerpoints are overfilled with information that distracts from the speaker. Keeping it simple and using it to complement the speaker (not take away from the speaker) is a really good tip. I tried to keep those bits of advice in mind while preparing for my article presentation next week. I realized how difficult it is to stop myself from putting more information on the slides. And since I already struggle with public speaking (As was shown with my 58 "ums" in my extra credit presentation lol) this will definitely be a challenge for me to memorize the information and be able to speak clearly (while being super nervous) and not freeze/ stumble on my words.

Well that's all for now folks. Have a great weekend and see you Tuesday!