"Youth workers purposefully intervene in young people's lives, creating opportunities, activities and conversations that aim to enable young people to think, feel and act differently towards their social world."
I feel as though this quote that I took from the article resonates well with our mission in the Rhode Island College Youth Development program. We work to intervene children's lives with purpose to aim them to have a beneficial lifestyle that eventually will not need our assistance but they will remember our resources.
Two new things that I learned from the article were...
1. In Chapter 8 it discusses how a youth worker identifies and asserts confidence in their role when working with others and also gains a better understanding and appreciation of different professional roles. What I grasped from that statement is that as a youth worker when I am in my profession stating a boundary and explaining to the youth my role will allow them to better understand my work and how I am helping them and we will have a mutual respect.
2. I feel like as a youth worker it is easily misconstrued that you want to be the youths friend. It is discussed within this article that the youth actually respect and value you more if you show them that you are a trusted adult that is a guide towards the youth. They can gather enough from their peers who are actually children and their friend but with you being able to embody integrity and professionalism the child you are working with is actually more willing to grow to like you.
VOCABULARY TERMS HIGHLIGHTED:
1. professionalism: the conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a profession or a professional person
2. effective working: works to come up with an inventive solutions to problems and continually improve their performance to achieve best results.
3. embodying: to be an expression of or give a tangible or visible form to an idea, quality, or feeling
Let's Get Connected!
(Making connections)
Using a personal connection I would say how I work at a summer camp and have been doing so for 4 years. I have moved up with the same group of kids since they were 7 (and they are now 11... and grown:(.) With working with children you will see that it is easier to be-friend them for them to like you but what you do not see is how they will NEVER respect you if you do it that way. With my group I love my kids and think they are wonderful but I absolutely recognize that they can get snappy and develop attitudes depending on how they are addressed. I have had co-staff that will be-friend them because it is displayed as "easier" to not be the disciplinary figure in these kid's lives. (Which I can agree that it can be harder at times) But, what they fail to realize is that the kids will never remember you as the "cool counselor that let me run off to the swings alone" they will just remember you as another face in their past. Every year I have kid's family message me asking saying that Billy Joe (ex.) wants to ensure that I will be returning to camp this year and how they look up to me as a role model figure.
Another experience that I have had with embodying a professional role would be my residential experience here at Rhode Island College. I feel that most of my residents view me as a more laid back RA. That the job to me is not about confiscating or looking to get anyone in-trouble but to be an outlet for them to ask advice from, or to come sit in my dorm and vent about the challenges and obstacles they are currently facing or a test they recently bombed. As this is my second year being on staff I look back to RA's that have impacted my experience here at RIC and remember the ones who didn't try to just be my friend but built friendship based on trust and respect of them as a person but an understanding of their position (job) and themselves as a person.
I feel as though both these connections are very insightful to what W,W,T discussed and connected the recommended habits and tips that I will also be taking in my future career.
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