Briefly describe the following traditional roles of a school social worker: caseworker and truant ...

The traditional roles of a school social worker include the following: caseworker, group worker, truant officer, counselor, and parent liaison.
Caseworker: Intervention has always been the essence of social work. Social workers have responded with a variety of methods to the problems caused by the complexities of modern society. Casework, traditionally, has been one of the first methods used in any given area; it encompasses the more clinical and best-known aspects of social work. Basically, social workers have had to prove their worth; that is, they have had to prove that they do something different from what was already being done. Because social workers have substantial training in family dynamics, they can analyze and diagnose common problems in a dysfunctional family. This is a skill that others in the typical school system do not have, and thus it is viewed as an area of particular expertise for the school social worker.
Truant officer: Often, the truant officer functions as an advocate for the child. There are times when acting as an agent of social control (the law, the system) need not be looked at negatively. The truant officer role may also be a way of helping parents. Sometimes teens become too powerful in their families and may refuse to go to school. In this instance, a truancy referral may help parents reassert their authority and/or assist them diagnostically if other problems are causing their child to be excessively rebellious.