Role Development

School social work is a specialized area of practice within the broad field of the social work profession. School social workers bring unique knowledge and skills to the school system and the student services team. School social workers are instrumental in furthering the purpose of the schools: to provide a setting for teaching, learning, and for the attainment of competence and confidence. School social workers are hired by school districts to enhance the district’s ability to meet its academic mission, especially where home, school and community collaboration is the key to achieving that mission. (School Social Work Association of America, 2005) The family and the school are the central places for the development of children. Herein can be found the hopes for the next generation. There are often gaps in this relationship, within the school, within the family, and in their relationships to each other and to the needs of students. There are gaps between aspirations and realities, between manifest need and avail-able programs. In the dynamic multicultural world of the child today, ther