Career confidential: Principal ticked off about TikTok challenges

Phyllis Fagell offers advice to educators who are trying to support students who are demonstrating difficult behavior when returning to school after the COVID-19 pandemic. A principal is frustrated at the vandalism occurring at his middle school in response to TikTok challenges and wants to know the most appropriate way to hold students accountable. A teacher is having trouble reaching a student who refuses to engage in class, and his mother and the school social worker are also at a loss for ideas.

Understanding the Political Landscape in Schools

This chapter examines the unique internal and external political landscape of public schools and its relevance to the practice of school social work. The chapter focuses on four key concepts essential for new school social workers to navigate the politics of schools: (1) developing an understanding of the internal and external systems in which they interact; (2) clearly defining the role of school social worker, often within systems that are unclear or are new to the social worker’s role; (3) collaborating across all of the disciplines; and (4) sharing resources and information. Navigating the political landscape in schools is never easy and requires school social workers to be attuned to all of the nuances and complexities of the political landscape both inside and outside of schools.

Harnessing Community Resources to Enhance Student Learning and Development

One of the most important ways in which school social workers can support students, families, and staff is by acquiring, developing, and distributing community resources. This chapter will discuss identifying needs, assembling resources, empowering students and families to access resources, and building staff and program capacity to meet community needs. Discussion will focus on needs assessments during the overlapping pandemics of COVID-19 and racial inequities. Strategies for conducting needs assessments, mapping assets, and investigating potential community partners are offered. Finally, the chapter covers the importance of collecting and reporting data to evaluate the success of the programs that the school social worker develops.

Prospects of School Social Work in Haor Areas of Bangladesh

This study employs qualitative research methods to explore the performance of school students in reading motivation, sincerity, and achievement and the perceived role of a school social worker in Tanguar Haor inhabitants of rural Sunamganj in Bangladesh. Findings of the study suggest that the stakeholders in rural education in haor areas are keen to see the students’ achievements in reading, motivation, and academic performance but unaware of how to improve. This paper argues that social workers have a significant role to play in rural areas, particularly in remote places like haor areas, to enhance students’ performances and academic achievements in the school as well as to improve the quality of education services in those areas.

Practice of School Social Worker with Children for Facilitating Social Needs in Sri Lanka

School social workers adopt ecological perspectives to facilitate children with social needs. The purpose of this study is to explore school social work practice in Sri Lanka to cater the children with social needs. A semi structured interviews was conducted with selected five school social workers. The interview questions were about their practices as a school social worker, daily activities especially effective support activity for students with social needs, student’s school life and their home, especially difficulties for supporting their families. Findings reveal that School Children with social needs around social problems, social relationship problems, structural and systemic problems such as child poverty, mother labour migration, lack of housing, lack of love and affections, lack of acceptance, love and kindness, belongingness, lack or inadequate security for the children. These social needs related lack of emotional and social developmental needs lead to impact on children’s educational performance. School social workers are very proactive in applying social work generic skills in school context in Sri Lanka. This study provides evidences for professionalizing the social work profession and enhances school system to provide guidance and consultation to school administrators, policy makers and practitioners focusing the significance of fulfilling the social needs of children during each stages of life via school social work programmes.