Transcript School Social Worker Training

Cooperative Educational Services
February 2015
Sandra M. Fortier, LISW

National Association of Social Workers Standards for School
Social Work Services, 2012

“School Social Workers seek to ensure equitable education
opportunities; ensure that students are mentally , physically, and
emotionally present in the classroom; and promote respect and
dignity for all students.”

Standards include:










Adhering to the ethics and values if the profession
Meet qualifications of professional practice
Conduct assessments with the goal of improving student social, emotional, behavioral, and
academic outcomes
Use evidence-informed practices in their interventions
Use data to guide service delivery
Organize their workload to fulfill their responsibilities
Pursue professional development
Ensure services are provided with multi-cultural competence
Provide leadership in developing a positive school climate
Engage in advocacy that seeks to ensure all students have equal access to education and
services
available at: www.socialworkers.org/practice/standards/School_Social_Work.asp

Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA)
Sec. 300.34 Related Services
“Counseling Services” mean services provided by qualified social workers, psychologists,
guidance counselors, or other qualified personnel. 300.34(c)(2)
“Social Work Services” in schools includes –
(i)
preparing a social or developmental history on a child with a disability;
(ii)
group and individual counseling with the child and family;
(iii)
working in partnership with parents and others on those problems in a child’s living
situation (home, school, and community) that affect the child’s adjustment to
school;
(iv)
mobilizing school and community resources to enable the child to learn as
effectively as possible in his or her educational program; and
(v)
assisting in developing positive behavioral intervention strategies.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act,
Prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs that receive federal financial
assistance from the US Dept of Education.
504 Plan: Schools must provide “related services,” as necessary, to students who are
identified for Section 504.
See: New Mexico Section 504 Training Tip Sheet Related Services under Section 504
available at: http://ped.state.nm.us/ped/RtI_SpecialEdResources.html

IDEA regulations –

Request for evaluation can come from parent or
school.

School must obtain written parental consent to
conduct an initial evaluation or re-evaluation (every 3
years), or a REED, (if parent and school agree that a
REED is sufficient).

School has 60 days maximum from the date of written
consent to provide parents with the results of the
evaluation.
An excellent curriculum/training on IDEA is available
at : www.parentcenterhub.org/repository/legacy/

Psychosocial Assessment – ecological approach

Information gathering through:





Staff, parent, & student interviews or report forms
File reviews – academic records, discipline records, attendance records, SAT
or IEP records, previous testing and evaluations
Formal observations in school setting
(sample forms available at ces.org)
Standardized Assessment Tools
Get training in assessment tools before use – MSW program, online training by
test producers, in-person training by district or professional
 Some districts require SWs to use BASC-II or other general screening tools.
 DSM 5 – online assessment measures available at
www.psychiatry.org/practice/dsm/dsm5/online-assessment-measures
 Specific assessment tools for School SWs:
http://sspw.dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/sspw/pdf/sswpginstrument.pdf
www2.massgeneral.org/schoolpsychiatry/screeningtools_tables.asp


EDT meets to review report and determine if student requires
School Social Work as a related service.

Present Level of Performance
Sets a baseline for the student’s current social, emotional, behavioral functioning
Written into the IEP document



IEP Goal



“SMART” – Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound
See “Guide to Social, Emotional, & Behavioral IEP Goals” (ces.org)
Align goals to Common Core Standards (Extended Band Goal Expectations) or
NM Content Standards for “technical subjects” (i.e. Health standards)
New Mexico Common Core State Standards with EBGE and NM Content Standards
available at: www.ped.state.nm.us/standards/

Schedule of Services page –






Service time per week
Setting (pull-out or inclusive)
Individual or group
Consult or Monitor
Accommodations and Modifications page
Quarterly Report on Progress – place in file quarterly and send copy
home. (forms available at ces.org)
Caseload list – name, service time, goal, annual
IEP date, re-eval date
 Service schedule – your work schedule when you
will see students
 Service log – track each student’s dates and
times of service, note absences, field trips,
testing, make up dates, etc.
 Psychotherapy notes – keep confidential and
private. This is YOUR professional documentation
and should not be left at the school. Medicaid
billing will allow you to keep your psychotherapy
notes on their system.

Another function of the School Social Worker:

A problem-solving and information gathering process
that looks beyond behavior and examines the factors
associated with the behavior, in order to understand
the function or purpose of the behavior.

For students who are referred to SAT, have an IEP, or a
504 Plan and demonstrate frequent, persistent, and/or
severe behavior problems that do not readily respond to
classroom intervention strategies

Required for Special Education students after 10 days of
disciplinary change in setting – consecutive or a “pattern
of similar behavior”
(Addressing Student Behavior Guide 2010, NM PED,
available at
http://ped.state.nm.us/RtI_SpecialEdResources.html).

Prior parental written consent is required to gather any new information.


Gather information to identify a specific target behavior –



FBA is usually conducted by members of the SAT or IEP team, sometimes other
staff who specialize in behavior or the student’s disability.
teacher report forms
observations
Gather information to determine the function of the behavior –


teacher, student, parent, interviews and report forms
Formal observations by multiple staff



Antecedent, Behavior, Consequence
Scatterplots
Culminates in the FBA Report Form


Formulate a hypothesis about the function of the behavior and the existence of a
skill or performance deficit.
Team meets to decide whether to proceed to developing a Behavior Intervention
Plan.
Sample forms for FBA process are available at:
http://ped.state.nm.us/RtI_SpecialEdResources.html





An intervention plan that emphasizes skills a student needs
in order to behave in more appropriate ways, or provides
motivation to meet the desired behavioral outcome.
Identifies the function of the behavior.
Is the behavior a skill or performance deficit?
Identifies positive interventions, supports, and
consequences to alleviate behavioral issues.
Provides a system of tracking outcomes and sets dates for
review.
Sample BIP Forms are available at:
http://ped.state.nm.us/Rtl_SpecialEdResources.html
More Info:
www.pbisworld.com/tier-2/behavior-intervention-plan-bip/
And www.pbis.org/school/pbis-and-the-law

Confidentiality – limited in nature
See:http://socialworkers.org/practice/school/confid
entiality.pdf
 Authorization for Release of Information form
(ces.org)

Mandated Reporting
 Crisis Situations (risk assessments, traumatic
events) & services to Regular Education students

Clarify policy with School Admin & CES Ancillary
Director about non-IEP services
 Obtain Informed Consent and HIPAA for on-going
 Intervene per professional ethics in crisis situations


“The School Social Worker in Crisis Situations” NASW,
Spring 2013 available at ces.org
 NASW
– School Social Work Practice Section –
www.socialworkers.org

Provides support and guidance for legal and
ethical issues
 School
Social Work Association of America www.sswaa.org