Publications from ODSW Social Work Supervsion | Página 10

Opening Address

began working in MSF, the ministry has gotten 80 MSF officers without social work
qualifications to pursue their graduate diploma or masters degree in social work.
To capitalise on the increase in interest in social work, efforts have been made to increase
the number of university places for social work students. MSF has worked with UniSIM to
expand the intakes of their part-time graduate diploma and bachelor’s programmes in
social work. In 2014, 120 graduated from these two programmes, compared to 90 a few
years ago. This year, the National University of Singapore (NUS) has also had a 40%
increase compared to the previous year for its two batches of social work students. In
addition, MSF has also been working with UniSIM to introduce a new full-time
undergraduate program in 2016, which will add about 40 more social work graduates to
the profession from 2020 onwards.
To ensure that the salaries remain competitive, NCSS has started publishing salary
guidelines to guide employers on the remuneration of social workers. MSF and MOH have
also increased support to VWOs providing government funded services.
2. Training and Development
To expand training and development, Mr Chan expressed that several changes have been
put in place. Training programs in SSI have been subsidized and more support has been
given to through the VWO Capabilities Fund (VCF) in terms of funding for scholarships,
post-graduate studies, overseas training and clinical supervision. This has led to more than
40 people receiving full time scholarships over the last four to five years to pursue both
undergraduate and master’s degrees.
There are also efforts in place to put more structure into training. An example of this would
be the National Social Work Competency Framework that MSF and MOH are hoping to
roll out later this year so as to set up the core competencies and career milestones for
social workers. It will serve a useful purpose in guiding training courses, developing career
maps and professional development plans. Mr Chan noted the momentousness of such an
effort as it is the first time the social and healthcare sectors are coming together for such a
major effort. In addition, the FSCs are also implementing a Code of Social Work Practice so
as to guide their practice.
3. Nurture a Culture of Peer Learning and Effective Supervision
Mr Chan expressed that learning does not always have to take place in a formal set ting,
within a classroom, or taught by an instructor. Less formal learning can be just as
important, especially when it comes to transmitting tacit knowledge and values. It is
therefore important to nurture a culture of peer-learning, mentoring and effective
supervision in the social work fraternity. He added that Ms Ang Bee Lian, Director of Social
Welfare, MSF has been involved in many of these efforts with initiatives such as the
“Tuning in to the Leaders” – a series organized together with SSI where seniors in social
work practice share their experiences with social work students and younger social
workers. She also pens a series called “Letters to Social Work Students” to help them
understand what social workers do. SSI has also been promoting Communities of Practice
(CoP), where social service professionals with common interests come together to share
experiences, insights and expertise. They started with a modest two CoPs in 2012. Since
then, they have facilitated 19 CoPs. Of these, 6 have completed their work while 13 are
ongoing.
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