Clinical Work Observation Report

Being both a psychology and social welfare major, I had an idea of what I wanted to pursue after college. For instance, I knew that I wanted to work on a clinical setting, helping both adults and children deal with their physical and mental imbalances. However, as I began to volunteer early at this semester at Oxford elementary school through Build- an organization that emphasizes literacy in children, I became not only more interested in the development of children, but also in the process of working in an educational setting. Yet, since I am still passionate about clinical work, I didn’t know how to find the balance between a career that shares elements of both educational and clinical work. Thus, the person I interview facilitated this process for me because despite working on the San Leandro Homework Club, which is an educational setting, she works to
She has a Childhood Developmental degree and has been working for the San Leandro Homework Club since May of 2016. For this specific organization, Heidi works primarily as a clinical and educational counselor. This means, that she is involved not on micro-level work, but also on mezzo and macro level practices. For instance, Heidi is not only expected to help children individually with their homework, but also to keep track and communicate if necessary, the emotional and social health of her students. Prior to the San Leandro Homework Club, Heidi has also been part of many macro level organizations. For instance, Heidi mentions that she has also work with Early Head Start- a federal, non-profit group that promotes the school readiness of children by working on their cognitive, social and physical skills. Thus for Heidi, the most important skills to have on these settings is being passionate and patient. She emphasizes that being passionate and patient are assets because of the amount of time, dedication and effort require to support a child’s learning and