Working within a school setting there are many different ways of helping aid and be an advocate for those students I work with. To be an effective school social worker there are many different ways to not only connect with those within the schools, but those outside as well, such as parents. Connecting with parents is a key factor to conducting a successful relationship in able to advocate for the students’ needs within the school.
Building rapport is such a basic, yet very important aspect of a social workers position. Having those positive interaction between social workers and the families is essential. Especially when working with the student in a school setting, it allows for better collaboration and to work on creating that nice transition between school and home. Recently I was sitting in an IEP where the communication you could tell was so open and welcomed from the parents it made for supporting the student so much easier and effective.
Having that open line of communication and being able to pick up the phone and directly call the parent is something that the student needs throughout the day. From the parent asking how the student did that day, to the teacher letting the parent know they didn’t like a certain snack. Teachers and social workers are here to help advocate for not only the students but the family as a whole.
Sometimes when working with families it can be tough to create that open line of communication right away. Coming from my experience when a parent has one bad experience it is hard to trust again, which this totally a valid feeling. Imagine working with someone who is supposed to have your child’s best interest in mind and providing them the least restrictive environment, but they completely over look all your child’s strengths and want to keep them in a contained classroom instead. When a parent experiences someone who doesn’t want to even acknowledge what your child can do it is hard to then trust someone else who claims they’re going to do that as well.
When working with parents who unfortunately have had a bad experience in the past it is the professional’s responsibility to take those extra steps. When starting to work with a family it is critical to meet them where they are at, not where we want them to be. If they have struggled in the past make the attempt to work even harder to connect with them and truly letting them know that their concerns are being listened to and what they think is best is being taken into consideration. Communication is key for working with not only students, but with the families. This allows for the student to thrive and experience the least restrictive environment within school.
School social worker sitting with student
Picture received from: https://socialwork.uic.edu/academics/professional-educator-license-pel-school-social-worker-endorsement/
References
Why relationships are key to good social work: Innovation Unit: New solutions for thriving societies. (2020, February 10). Retrieved October 01, 2020, from https://www.innovationunit.org/thoughts/why-relationships-are-key-to-good-social-work/
