Social workers and teachers join to deliver computers to low-income students

Teachers and social workers from Maine East's Family Center have joined up to provide new computers for low-income students at an Illinois-based high school, the Park Ridge Herald-Advocate reports.

The center's social workers, who focus on student and family support services, helped find and deliver the computers.

According to the news outlet, the teachers at Maine East High School focused on students who needed a computer at home. Once selected, each high schooler detailed how the machines could help improve their learning.

Speaking to the Herald-Advocate, school social worker Erin Biernbaum noted that there were "so many students who didn't have access to a computer at home," which proved a major impediment to completing their online coursework.

A large number of the chosen students are from immigrant families. Some of the social workers speak languages such as Gujrati, Urdu and Spanish, which enabled them to help the beneficiaries learn the technical aspects of computer use in their native language, the paper reports.

Individuals who are interested in a master's degree in social work may want to aid similar youth from low-income immigrant families. They may enroll in sociology coursework on the education, language and resource needs of these students. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, social workers who were employed in child and family services in May of 2008 earned an average income of $36,660 per year.

POSTED BY: ec_admin - January 21st, 2011 at 03:51pm ( 0 )