Review for SW1101E: A Heart-Head-Hand Connection

Course Number and Name: SW1101E Social Work: A Heart-Head-Hand Connection
Prof/Lecturer: A/Prof Esther Goh
TA: Ms. Goh Guan Zhen
Sem taken: Y1S1 AY17/18
Modular Credits: 4

On the 8th August 2017 I tot is:

A course that will cover an overview of what social workers do, and what social workers should do. The introduction video makes it feel like there is going to be a lot of hands on discussions in tutorials and the overview of the workload seems to be manageable.

What it really is arh:

The module is split into the following components:

1. Tutorial and forum participation
2. Reflection Paper + 2 compulsory agency visitation
3. Newspaper portfolio
4. Finals exam

Lectures are 2 hours long held once a week. There are a total of 5 tutorials, each 2 hours long held once every 2 weeks

The percentages are split accordingly:
1. (20%)
2. (15%)
3. (25%)
4. (40%)

This module is a crash course on the social welfare system of Singapore and the roles of Social Workers. From covering existing social issues of the vulnerable, different sectors of Social Work, to how the Singapore’s social welfare safety net works, this module will focus mainly on the connection between community, family and state, as well as the ethical code and values of social workers. Lectures will give a run through of each topic, with some additional information given here and there, but most of the content comes from the readings (which are a lot) for each topic. Content is very heavy and very loaded, with plenty of hands-on assessments that require a good amount of time and dedication. Notes for revision for this module are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED.

For this module, there are only 5 tutorials. To prepare for the tutorials, the IVLE will have instructions uploaded for students to note, be it needing to do preparatory notes for certain specific readings (which needs to be handed in as a hard copy) or to do extra readings on different articles online with relations to the topics that will be covered in class. Tutorials do not cover the whole scope of the syllabus and function as “extra insight” to the topics instead. Discussions, sharing and short presentations are the main components of tutorials and all count towards tutorial participation. Additionally, forum postings make up part of the 20% as well, meaning that it is sort of a requirement to post personal viewpoints on the Social Work IVLE forums and engage in the discussions regarding different topics to express your opinion.

After the first lecture, students will be briefed of a need to visit 2 social agencies in Singapore somewhere before the Mid-terms, one is a Family Service Centre (FSC), another is a Social Service Centre (SSC). After visiting these agencies (and getting their office ‘autographs’) students need to write a 3-paged reflection essay. The essay should contain personal viewpoints of what you have learnt from this visit, along with how the visits have impacted you. Not a lot of assistance is given and students are expected to incorporate readings and whatever has been taught into the essay. A good way to have this done is to write down notes of key features of the agency you have visited (Something you never knew of or something very unique about the agency). From there, I suggest planning out a rough outline of “What have I learnt, how does it apply to me and what do I think a Social Worker does after today”, before writing down your viewpoints. Do try to include relevant knowledge from your readings as well. You can cite from other internet sources and your readings if you feel there is a need to.

While the good news is that Social Work does not have Mid-terms, that does not mean that there is nothing to do or prepare for. After a few lectures, you will learn that there is a newspaper portfolio that needs to be done throughout the first half of the Semester up to mid-October. However for my year, there was very little information or instructions given that was very useful to work on the Portfolio. I had to personally consult the lecturer when she took over my tutorial to find out more. Thankfully she re-uploaded another set of instructions a week later, however, that meant I ended up with a shorter span of 2 weeks to start on the Portfolio. I barely made the deadline, with a fluke of luck, and scored an average grade for the assignment.

This 6 paged portfolio (excludes your cover page, bibliography and length of newspaper articles that you need to print) requires you to focus on a particular social issue in Singapore using 10 newspaper articles and reliable sources (not Wikipedia) that is local and current (same year) as evidence, illustration and insight.

The bare minimum this portfolio includes:
1. What is the social issue you want to focus on
2. What is the extent of the issue, with reference to some of your articles
3. Why do social workers need to intervene/take note of this issue
4. Existing solutions
5. A personal evaluation of these solutions and which is the best
6. Conclusion

A good way to begin is to find your social issue to focus on: vulnerable elderly, urban poverty or delinquent children. Once you found your topic of focus, you can start searching on sites such as Channel NewsAsia, or other local news to find your articles. It is not necessary to find 10 articles as you need to also include sources for existing solutions as well. Sadly, you are not to cite from most of your readings given. Around the time of your agency visits, you should either already have sources to begin with or already done with a rough first draft. If you have a lot of content heavy assignments, prioritize this to be done early so you will not get burnt out. It is 6 pages of stuff to write (about 2300 words). Both this and the reflection essay acts as a stand-in for mid-terms, so do not take this lightly! Note that the Department is SUPER particular with the font and spacing and page limit, with the requirement for you to copy paste and print out the newspaper articles as the submission is hard-copy. Times New Roman will be your best friend for your reflection and portfolio!

Lastly comes the reason why I strongly recommend doing notes for revision, the Finals. 40 MCQs worth 1.5 marks each, followed by 4 short essay questions 20 marks each, with multiple parts and only 2 of the short essay questions to be chosen. Like how you were not prepared for your reflection and portfolios, you will not be prepared for this. No revisions, no past year papers, nothing. This paper is a strong killer, with many of the questions phrased in ambiguous manner that you can only tell from having diligently done your readings. I even spotted a few questions that not even the essentials and lectures had, such as one asking what was the main topic “Optional reading X” was covering on. The only way to survive is to keep up-to-date with your readings (essentials and optional), revise your tutorials and have notes ready to test your understanding. If you find yourself struggling, it is okay to leave a few topics out of revision, since only the essay questions are the ones needing strong content based knowledge.

Can handle mah: 5/10 (1 = mai la mai la hard sia, 10 =  super easy, can do one)

This module requires consistent effort in order to score. Not only is this module content heavy, most of the topics taught heavily focuses on the basics of social issues as well as the social welfare system of Singapore. With that said, there are a lot of things to take note of when doing the finals, this is to facilitate for easier revision.

Additionally, the main bulk of the module comes from the Portfolio and Reflections. Other than the deadlines and the heavy content knowledge required to complete both, as long as you can clear that out of the way, it will be easier to focus on other modules.

Fun or not: 6/10 (1 = soul crushing, 10 = dammm fun must try)

As this topic covers the basics, it is really general and can get really dry. The only times there is a focus or in-depth analysis of a certain issue is during the tutorials. Being able to have discussions and learning what other people’s perspectives are, can be really interesting and useful. This is especially the case as the classes tend to be a good mix of students who either want to take this module as a Major or are just curious about Social Work in general. To be able to participate, it is advised to read up on the tutorial’s topics and the required readings (since you may need to do the preparatory work for the readings anyways) so you will not be lost in each sessions.

How applicable: 8/10 (1 = I feel like I wasted my time, 10 = ENLIGHTENMENT)

This module provided me with the insight of the country’s welfare systems, from understanding the standpoint of the Government, along with how people can help provide assistance to vulnerable families. Being able to personally visit the Social Centre and Family Centre has been a highlight in this module for me as it has opened my eyes to what are the social services available, to which I believe not many people are aware of. I feel that I have benefited in better understanding the community of the country, and can use the knowledge I have learnt to contribute back to society.

TL;DR:

This module covers the basics of Singapore’s welfare systems, essential if you plan to be a Social Worker. Interesting topic but expect heavy content, and a lot of writing.

Cheers XD
Fica