Clinical group supervision experiences of Singapore school counsellors

ABSTRACT

This paper seeks to gain an insight into counselling supervision experiences of Singapore school counsellors (SCs). In-depth, semi-structured interview sessions with 14 SCs were conducted. Their taped interviews were transcribed and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Positive and negative aspects of their experiences included feeling more connected with other counsellors, experiencing a safe environment for sharing, and having supervision as a source of support and help; and feeling nervous about being judged or assessed, lacking in structure, and not having enough time in supervision. The Integrated Developmental Model (IDM) and Discrimination Model (DM) are discussed here to provide a framework for understanding the experiences of the SCs in group supervision.

KEYWORDS:

• Counselling supervision experience
• school counsellor

Acknowledgements

I wish to thank my Master's student, Miss Chong Wan Ing, for her contribution to this paper. The interview data used in this study was collected by Chong Wan Ing.

Disclosure statement

There is no conflict of interest to declare and this paper meets the legal requirements of the study country–Singapore.

Notes on contributor

Dr. Soo Yin Tan is a senior lecturer and assistant dean for Diploma Program and Student Development at the National Institute of Education, Singapore.

Additional information

Funding

The study was supported by a grant from the National Institute of Education, Singapore [grant number RS11/14TSY].