The Establishment of School Social Work in Austria - From a Project to a Regular Offer

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by jay

The text examines the current situation and core challenges of school social work in Austria, tracing how a shift toward a “knowledge society” intensifies societal expectations of schools and education. It draws on empirical studies conducted in Carinthia and Styria and includes Austria-wide research projects. The contribution frames school social work through the perspectives of pupils, teachers, and parents, and presents thematic and structural analyses covering conflicts, family issues, spatial conditions, and staff competencies. Finally, it discusses how empirical research can be sustainably implemented.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Knowledge society and changing school demands

School as social living place

Social pedagogical reflexivity and political legitimatisation

Main tasks in the school context

The Establishment of School Social Work in Austria – From a Project to a Regular Offer Arno Heimgartner*1 and Stephan Sting2 • The contribution introduces the present situation and the basic challenges of school social work in Austria. Starting with the perception of a developing “knowledge society”(Höhne, 2004), school is seen asa life place at which social subjects and problems occur and are made manifest. The analyses are based in particular on empirical studies by the University of Klagenfurt (Sting & Leitner, 2011) and the University of Graz (Gspurning, Heimgartner, Pieber, & Sing, 2011), which were carried out in school social work facilities of Carinthia and Styria, but they also include Austrian-wide research projects. A methodical view is presented along the main target groups “pupils”, “teachers” and “parents”, and the basic orientations are discussed. The thematic analysis characterises school social work as a multi-thematic service (e.g., conflicts, love, problems at school, problems of the family) that needs to oppose the reduction to single problem areas such as drug abuse or violence. The structural analyses render visible the meaning of spatial conditions, personnel competence and the social-spatial network. Finally, the possibilities ofa lasting implementation of empirical research in school social work are discussed. Keywords: School social work; Austria; Social pedagogy; Evaluation 1 *Corresponding author. Universität Graz, Institut für Erziehungs-und Bildungswissenschaft, Graz, Austria [arno.heimgartner@uni-graz.at](arno.heimgartner@uni-graz.at) 2 Alpen-Adria Universität Klagenfurt, Institut für Erziehungswissenschaft und Bildungsforschung, Klagenfurt, Austria [Stephan.Sting@aau.at](Stephan.Sting@aau.at) Vzpostavitev socialnega svetovalnega3 dela v avstrijskih šolah – od projekta do redne ponudbe Arno Heimgartner and Stephan Sting • V prispevku so predstavljeni trenutno stanje in izzivi socialnega dela vavstrijskih šolah. Če za izhodišče vzamemo razvijanje »družbe znanja«(Höhne, 2004), je šola življenjski prostor, v katerem se socialni problemipojavljajo in postanejo vidni. Analiza temelji na empiričnih raziskavah, ki sta jih v šolskih svetovalnih službah na območju avstrijske Koroške in Štajerske izvedli Univerza v Celovcu (Sting & Leitner 2011) in Univerza v Gradcu (Gspurning, Heimgartner, Pieber, & Sing 2011). Polegteh raziskav so vključeni tudi drugi večji avstrijski raziskovalni projekti. Metodološki pristop je zajel vidik treh glavnih ciljnih skupin – »učenci«, »učitelji« in »starši« – ter analizo temeljnih usmeritev socialnega dela. Tako so v prispevku analizirani posegi te nove storitve v šolskem kontekstu (na primer razreševanje konfliktov, ljubezen, težave učencev v šoli, njihove težave doma) . Šolsko socialno delo se ne ukvarja samo s problemi, kot je zloraba drog ali nasilje. Prek strukturne analize so prikazani pomen prostorskih pogojev za izvajanje tega dela, osebne kompetence izvajalcevin socialno-prostorska mreža te nove storitve. Na koncu so obravnavanemožnosti trajne implementacije empiričnega raziskovanja na področju šolskega socialnega dela. Ključne besede: šolsko socialno (svetovalno) delo; Avstrija; socialna pedagogika; evalvacija 3 V nemškem govornem področju se v zadnjih letih kot nadredni izraz, ki zajema širše področje vzgojnega, svetovalnega in socialnega dela, uveljavlja izraz socialno delo. V kontekstu tegaprispevka je treba izraz socialno delo razumeti v smislu pri nas uveljavljenega šolskegasvetovalnega dela, ki pa se v Avstriji šele razvija. Introduction During the past two decades, we have seen a massive expansion of school social work in German-speaking countries in Europe. Following earlier developments in Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian countries, social work has been established in German-speaking countries as an additional indispensable element of the school system (Huxtable & Blyth, 2002) . The transformation to a “knowledge society”(Höhne, 2

FAQs

What motivates the expansion of school social work in German-speaking Europe?

It follows earlier developments in Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian countries and grows alongside a massive expansion over the past two decades, as social work becomes an indispensable element of the school system.

How does the “knowledge society” relate to increased demands on schools?

The transformation to a “knowledge society” increases societal demands for schooling and education, raising the importance of educational credentials and cultural capital and reinforcing adolescents’ view of school as an unavoidable stage.

Which groups and perspectives structure the analysis of school social work in Austria?

The methodical view focuses on the main target groups “pupils”, “teachers”, and “parents”, and discusses basic orientations for the school social work service.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by jay