Youth work is a specialised form of social work that primarily focuses on the growth and development of the youth. Given the specialised nature of the job, the youth worker profession in Singapore needs to be strengthened and developed so as to meet the needs of the youths. With an increasing complexity of the nature of stressors faced by Singaporean youths, there is a need to build the capabilities of youth workers to effectively reach out, engage and work with youths with complex issues.

To enhance the capability and competencies of youth workers and volunteers in youth work, a work group chaired by the National Council of Social Service (NCSS) and NYC was formed in April 2005. The work group members included representatives from MCYS, the Social Service Training Institute and practitioners from Youth Organisations (YOs) and VWOs. With inputs from key players in the youth sector, the work group made recommendations on the training road map for youth workers and volunteer youth workers to enhance the professionalism and competencies within the youth sector. Their recommendations, as well as Core Competency Assessment Toolkits for Youth Workers and Volunteer Youth Workers, can be found on the NYGR, NCSS and NYC websites.

Full Core Competencies Report Executive Summary Assessment Tools for Youth Workers Assessment Tools for Volunteer Youth Workers Annex A Annex B Annex C Annex D Annex E Annex F Annex G Annex H Annex I

 

Under the auspices of the National Committee on Youth Guidance and Rehabilitation (NYGR), the National Youth Council (NYC) organised the inaugural NYGR Youth Congress 2007-2008.  The Youth Congress commenced in September 2007 and ended on 5 April 2008 with the Youth Peer-To-Peer Assembly which showcased the projects done by the 12 participating schools under the guidance of 5 Youth Sector Organisations. The objectives of the Congress are to increase youths’ awareness on youth crime issues and empowering them to make a difference in the lives of others. The Congress
is an excellent opportunity for youths in school to create youth-for-youth projects to tackle youth crime issues. Please click here for more details about the Youth Congress and the projects that the students embarked on.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) believes that teaching appropriate social behaviour is integral to every teacher’s responsibility. Teachers and school leaders immediately correct pupils who misbehave in school. Pupils who misbehave repeatedly are referred to counselling to help them deal with underlying problems that prompt their continued misbehaviour.

All schools have set up a three-tier referral system for counselling, with teachers as first-line counsellors at the first level of intervention. All teachers are provided with basic training in counselling skills. More difficult cases are referred to trained Teacher-Counsellors (TCs). There are two TCs in every primary school and junior college/centralised institute and four TCs in every secondary school. Cases beyond the expertise of the TCs are referred to school-based counsellors, MOE counselling professionals and other external agencies.

MOE is in the process of staffing all schools with one full-time school-based counsellor each. All secondary schools would have such a counsellor by 2006 while primary schools and junior colleges/centralised institutes by 2008. In schools with higher counselling needs, these full-time school counsellors will be augmented by part-time school counsellors, who are highly experienced former education officers.

Where necessary, parent conferences are also held with the pupil’s parents to discuss how the home can support the pupil to change for the better. To help these pupils maintain their newly acquired positive behaviours, schools monitor their progress closely, assigning teacher-mentors where necessary.

MOE believes that effective discipline is based on a consistent philosophy. A document called the Discipline Framework was distributed to all schools in October 2004 outlining MOE’s basic belief and philosophy regarding pupil discipline. The document states that discipline is an educative process to develop pupils’ moral faculties and the goal of discipline is self-discipline. The Discipline Framework suggests that strong leadership, coupled with a whole school, multi-pronged approach, incorporating both preventive and corrective measures, is required to achieve the goal of effective discipline.

MOE’s strategy for developing self-discipline in pupils is to build pupils’ Social and Emotional (SE) competencies by:

• Creating a supportive environment;

• Teaching SE skills and components of good character;

• Providing opportunities to exercise good behaviour; and

• Guiding and re-orientating pupils who have erred in their behaviour.

Teachers are the key agents for developing good discipline in our pupils. They exhort the importance of right moral behaviour and good citizenship as part of the holistic education they deliver. In each school, teachers cultivate an environment that promotes learning, gracious interaction, care and service before self. They plan and implement programmes that emphasise a healthy way of life for their students. To complement the teachers’ efforts to achieve the desired outcomes, schools will also implement both preventive and corrective measures and these include the teaching of life skills, involvement in community programmes, counselling and, as a last resort, corporal punishment.

All schools have set up clear structures and referral systems for the management of discipline in school and appropriate personnel have been appointed to the MOE mandated posts of Discipline Masters/Mistresses (DMs) to lead the maintenance of discipline in school. From 1999 onwards, the DMs are assisted by Operations Managers (OMs) who are former Police/Army officers.

Jointly managed by MOE and the Singapore Police Force (SPF), this scheme aims to help schools better manage school discipline and extend a symbol of police authority in schools. Initiated in 1997, eligible Discipline Masters/Mistresses, Disciplinary Teachers and Operations Managers of secondary schools and vocational training centres are appointed as Honorary VSC (School) officers or teacher-cops. Teacher-cops carry out the following four roles:

• As an advisor to the school on matters pertaining to delinquency and police procedures;

• As a counsellor to delinquent students;

• To network with other stakeholders of youth development to build and enhance localised partnerships to address youth crime; and

• As an enforcer of the law in the school context.

NCSS organises quarterly networks for agencies working with youth. One main objective is to facilitate dialogue and learning on effective programmes and best practices for the agencies. NCSS has been facilitating these networks since 1997, so that agencies can forge professional partnerships and tap on one another’s strengths and expertise. Through these networks, professionals are brought together, so they can explore collaborations and possible solutions to address the current and emerging issues that our youths may be grappling with. To date, the Youth Services Network has over 90 member agencies.

Under the Police-School Liaison System, a Police Liaison Officer (PLO) is appointed for each school and the officer works closely with the school authorities and gives advice on police-related matters. The advantage of having a PLO is that the schools and their nearby Neighbourhood Police Centres (NPCs) are able to establish a good working relationship over time. In recent years, SPF has also introduced the Community Liaison & Preparedness (CLP) Team in NPCs. The CLP officers assist the PLO in working with the schools and have enhanced working relationships even further. In addition, the school authorities and the Police Divisions meet at least once a year or more at Police-School networking sessions to discuss strategies to deal with youth crime in schools. A Police Liaison Officer (PLO) meeting with the management of a school.

MCYS organised a Research Symposium on the Rehabilitation of Offenders in 2005. The objectives were to promote evidence-based practice for positive intervention outcomes, provide a platform for the sharing of practice wisdom and research findings, enhance the research capabilities of service providers, and encourage networking and collaboration among agencies. The event attracted 120 participants from community partners and government agencies such as the Singapore Prison Service (SPS) and SPF, who shared findings from their recent studies. The symposium was followed by a workshop in statistical research techniques, and the distribution of a research primer to impart basic research skills to practitioners who are keen to embark on their own research projects.

Restorative Practices is an approach to student management piloted by MOE in 2005. Restorative Practices is a non-confrontational/non-blaming approach that brings errant pupils through a thinking process (through the use of a series of questions) to help them take responsibility for their action and mobilises support to help pupils change. It uses dialogue/conferences to work with the pupils. The dialogue/conference involves offender(s) and those affected by the misbehaviour going through a structured process that explores Responsibility, Restitution and Reconciliation. By bringing the errant pupil(s) through such a process, MOE helps students develop essential Social Emotional Competencies, which are necessary for good discipline and behaviour. Currently, there are four schools which have adopted this approach, and another nine schools which have just embarked on it.

In 1995, the Report of the Inter-Ministry Committee on Dysfunctional Families, Juvenile Delinquency and Drug Abuse recommended that "...(Schools) can refer difficult cases to family service centres or other social work agencies for counselling or other follow-up programmes...". Since then, the Ministry of Education (MOE) has started giving funds to schools to engage the professional services of Voluntary Welfare Organisations (VWOs).

School social work is defined as "... social service provided in schools for students, teachers and school management. It is oriented to help students who may face difficulties in their developmental process and/or in adjusting to their school life; and coordinating and influencing the efforts of the school, the family and community, when necessary, to help these students ".

Its goal is to provide emotional, social and familial support to enable students to obtain maximum benefits from their schooling experience. It allows the social workers to closely monitor the progress of students, to build up a positive relationship with school personnel, and to support schools in the management and development of students.

The National Council of Social Service (NCSS), in partnership with a group of experienced school social work practitioners, has developed a guide to school social work. The objective of this guide is to set service guidelines and standards on the provision of school social work so that both service providers and service users will know their roles and responsibilities. For more information on School Social Work, please visit the NCSS website. For a list of agencies providing School Social Work, please click here.

A National Symposium on School Social Work and Counselling was organised from 21 to 22 June 2006 at Le Meridien Hotel. The aim of the Symposium is to highlight issues surrounding students in the school setting and to discuss ways of enhancing school-based services. Overseas speakers from the United States and Hong Kong, as well as local speakers will be sharing on their expertise in this area.

Click here for more information on the Symposium.

School assembly talks on crime prevention, secret society activities, road/traffic safety and police career opportunities for the general education of the student population are organised by the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) and SPF. These talks disseminate information to the general population of the schools rather than just high-risk students.

A School CSSP is an action plan jointly drawn up by the schools and other related parties such as the grassroots, residents, the police and other government agencies, to tackle issues and problems affecting the safety and security of the schools and its vicinity. Projects under School CSSPs include youth camps, exhibitions and talks to prevent youth crime, forming a school watch group etc.

Since 1996, NYC, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups (HKFYG), has co-ordinated the Singapore-Hong Kong Youth Workers’ Exchange Programme. This annual programme sends four youth workers to Hong Kong once in every two years for two weeks while HKFYG sends two staff to Singapore in the alternate years. To date, 33 youth workers have benefited from the programme.

Recognising that Singapore and Hong Kong face similar issues and circumstances in youth work, there is good scope for the exchange of experiences and information between the two countries. Through this exchange programme, it is hoped that youth workers can enhance their knowledge and broaden the scope of their experience through mutual sharing and direct observation of how others deal with similar issues.

*Youth workers update A/P Ho Peng Kee, Guest-of-Honour the Youth.Net Conference, on the local youth cyber scene.

*Renowned international and local speakers engage in a dialogue with audience on the growing cyber trends amongst youths globally.