School Social Worker Chapter Summary

The first two chapters in School Social Worker: A Direct Practice Guide, by JoAnn Jarolmen outlines the history of social workers in the schools, the theoretical frameworks, and modalities used, and what a typical day may entail. To begin, an important legislation, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 1990, assisted the social workers in establishing their place in the schools through the services they were providing (p. 3). School social workers developed through socioenvironmental means, in that their focus became broader and encompassed the emotional and environmental influences of the students. With more job responsibilities, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) in 1955 recognized school social workers as a specialty

6-7). Secondly, the ecological perspective looked at the relationship between the student and their environment where if there is a change in the student, there needs to be a change in the environment to maintain balance (p. 10). Lastly, the strengths perspective focused on the students’ strengths and not deficits. Furthermore, Sigmund Freud, Anna Freud, Erik Erikson, and Jean Piaget, are important theorists who laid the foundation of understanding child development. S. Freud theory centered on childhood traumas and crisis, while his daughter A. Freud’s focus was ego development and ego defenses (p. 12-13). E. Erikson theory is based on development throughout the life span and J. Piaget’s theory focused on intellectual and mental development (p 14-15). Understanding developmental history is essential for school social workers and staff working with children and conducting appropriate assessments. As an illustration, chapter two explored the assessment process for special services in which a pre-evaluation is needed and is done in the regular classroom to show interventions being made before a referral is