Post on 22-Dec-2015
Library Association of Singapore
Workforce Skills Qualifications System
for Library Officers &
Para-professional
Janice Chia, Chair, Training & Development, LAS
Brunei Darussalam Library Association 25th Anniversary
Regional Conference on Library, Archives and Museums
November 2011
FOCUS ON STAFF
• Traditional focus on resources• Current focus on value-added services• Who are the most visible staff?• Whose efficiency allows the professional to operate
effectively?
Brunei, Nov 2011
Right staff, right skills
• Doing the right things right• Support staff are the front line• Technical services more reliant on support staff• Singapore overall has generous support staff levels; the
total population in libraries is not small• Where to get relevant education and certification and
continuing education?
Brunei, Nov 2011
From Temasek to Nothing
• Temasek Polytechnic (TP) offered courses in library
skills and know ledge aimed at para-professional and
would-be paraprofessional staff• 5 years ago TP terminated courses• Large libraries plan and conduct own in-house/on the
job training programmes for these staff;• Small libraries rely on on the job training
Brunei, Nov 2011
WDA Initiative• 2007 - the Workforce Development Agency (WDA)
approached LAS to develop competency standards for
the Library industry• Why competency standards? What do they lead to? The
importance of WSQ (Workforce Skills Qualifications) –
portability & recognition• LAS and NLB first jointly developed the competency map
for support staff and professionals
Brunei, Nov 2011
Who are WDA?• Government statutory authority about 7 years old
which:– Supports the development of competency
standards for industry– Provides pre-delivery approval of courses– Encourages regular reviews of courses– Provides assistance to bodies wishing to train
for their industry
Brunei, Nov 2011
Competency Standards for Libraries
• WDA focused on the Creative Industries from 2007
and asked LAS to develop the competency standards
and potential training courses that could be offered
to LAS members/interested outsiders
• In 2008, 5 LAS members came together to develop
the first 5 competency standards for support staff
professionals at Entry Level 2
Brunei, Nov 2011
Approval of Competency Standards
• The five standards were finalised with the help of a
consultant appointed by WDA who had done similar
work in UK• These were then tabled for approval at the WDA
Steering Committee responsible for standards
development• The standards were then made ready for
development into training courses
Brunei, Nov 2011
Developing Training Courses• Mid 2009 another team of LAS members came
forward to help develop and deliver courses• Before they could begin, they were required by WDA
to attend the Advanced Certificate for Training and
Assessment (ACTA) Advanced Certificate course
conducted by WDA• 10 of our members have completed the course
Brunei, Nov 2011
Target groups
• Entry level – no prior requirements• Staff needing a specific or broad grounding in basic
library services• Staff in allied areas who need to know about library
functions• New support staff: staff moving to new areas of work• Experienced support staff who would like a qualification
for recognition• People who are looking to enter/re-enter library work
Brunei, Nov 2011
Library Competency Standards ( Entry Level 2)
Brunei, Nov 2011
Competency
Statement of Attainment (SOA)
Training (2 or 3 days)
Assessment2 weeks later
Library Competency Standards ( Entry Level 2)
Brunei, Nov 2011
Competency 1
Competency 2
Competency 3
Competency 4
Competency 5
Higher Certificate in Library and Information
Services
Library Competency Standards ( Entry Level 2)
1. Support general reference and information enquiry
work
2. Support collection maintenance
3. Support acquisitions and serials work
4. Support loans and membership services
5. Support bibliographic control work (3-Day Module)
Brunei, Nov 2011
Training Courses Timeframe
• The first course on was accredited in June 2010 and
first training in August 2010.• The rest of the courses were accredited by Nov 2010
and the first training in Jan 2011.• A cycle of the 5 modules were set up so that staff can
gradually assemble the SOAs needed to obtain the
HCLIS
Brunei, Nov 2011
Course Fees• Gross Fees per course– S$ 330 for 2 day module– S$495 for 3 day module
• Nett Fees per course (after subsidies) – S$65 for a 2 day module: – S$95 for a 3 day module
• Full certificate gross fee– S$1815
• Full certificate net fee (after subsidies):– S$355
Brunei, Nov 2011
The numbers so far ….• Support General Reference = 76• Support Collection Maintenance = 48• Support Bibliographic Control = 31• Support Acquisitions & Serials = 48• Provide Loans & Membership Services = 34• Total SOAs issued for the 5 modules = 237• Total no. of HCLIS = 17• No. of Unique Headcounts = 97
Brunei, Nov 2011
The Challenges• Limited manpower resources in LAS Council• Balancing demands & limitations• Keeping up with the paperwork• Sustainability of courses & trainers
Brunei, Nov 2011
The fruits
“It is a good opportunity to
upgrade and receive
recognition of our skills.
Hopefully [attending these
courses] can help us in our
career advancement.”
Brunei, Nov 2011
“[Participating in these
programmes] will enable me
to better perform my job and
duties.”