Training of social workers in the Federal Republik of Germany

In the early 1970s the training of social workers in FRG was raised to the university level. At the same time a distinction was introduced between the studies in a so-called Fachhochschule and at university departments of pedagogics. The change in status of social workers training is more than just the evidence of growing professionalization of that vocation. It must also be treated as an important element of modernization processes within the West-German society. On the one hand the necessity of such a modernization was a result of growing social expectations with respect to having both "old" and "new" needs satisfied. On the other hand, it was an attempt to answer to the criticism of the sociopolitical system voiced by the so-called "new left". Other symptoms of modernization attempts were i.e. widening the scope of self-goverment in various spheres of public life, making the system of higher education more accessible in consequence of "equal opportunities" programme, developing the social security system, etc. To attempts at modernizing the socio-political system should also be counted the replacement of the so-called "hard" social control with the so called "soft" control. The core of the "soft" control are social workers. Therefore the issue of training them is in the focus of interest of social sciences. The article discusses several problems connected with the training of social workers, in particular: a) demand for social benefits and services and a corresponding conception of social work professionalization; b) social workers' utilization of scientific knowledge and the related question of science as a means of solving practical problems; c) differentiation of training. The author hopes that even though the article in concerned with West German matters, it may still attract attention of all those professionally and practically interested in the social workers' status and activity.Digitalizacja i deponowanie archiwalnych zeszytów RPEiS sfinansowane przez MNiSW w ramach realizacji umowy nr 541/P-DUN/201