In my second year of high school, there was a time that I needed help. I felt lost and pretty much hopeless. In that, I made the choice to ask my history teacher for help. I am still boggled by the fact that I did, because it changed the course of my life forever. Before this encounter I felt like a ghost when it came to teachers; a person who slipped through the cracks of a system that was not built to protect nor serve people of color. Yet, as a person of color, I tried to do more with my life than the standards I was given. I was a 15 year old Hispanic girl, born and raised in South Jamaica, Queens. The school that I attended did not require hard work or effort to receive passing grades; rather, one just had to stay out of trouble and be
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Teachers and social workers have two different lens in which they see a situation. If I was the practitioner instead of the client I would have seen red flags before the client would have approached me. First is that I would have inquired as into why the student barely showed up to classes. If I was the practitioner, I would have created opportunities for the client and I to meet individually and acknowledge that I am there as a support. Social workers need to understand the engagement process and how to better serve students “Engagement is a socio-emotional, practical, and political process of coming together with others” (Finn, 2007, pg. 212). Engagement allows social workers to build a rapport with the client (Finn, 2007). Some of the skills that I would use as a social worker that my teacher used with me is being able to be genuine and honest with her responses. When it comes to adolescence, there is a way that you have to be honest with them without suggesting an answer or telling them what to do. You can tell the client the end result of each path, but not which path to take. That is a key skill that I have learned over the past few years. The way I view how to handle a situation is not the always the best way or only way and therefore we must allow clients to make these types of decisions for
Teachers and social workers have two different lens in which they see a situation. If I was the practitioner instead of the client I would have seen red flags before the client would have approached me. First is that I would have inquired as into why the student barely showed up to classes. If I was the practitioner, I would have created opportunities for the client and I to meet individually and acknowledge that I am there as a support. Social workers need to understand the engagement process and how to better serve students “Engagement is a socio-emotional, practical, and political process of coming together with others” (Finn, 2007, pg. 212). Engagement allows social workers to build a rapport with the client (Finn, 2007). Some of the skills that I would use as a social worker that my teacher used with me is being able to be genuine and honest with her responses. When it comes to adolescence, there is a way that you have to be honest with them without suggesting an answer or telling them what to do. You can tell the client the end result of each path, but not which path to take. That is a key skill that I have learned over the past few years. The way I view how to handle a situation is not the always the best way or only way and therefore we must allow clients to make these types of decisions for