The Profession of social pedagogue in Lithuania: changes and perspectives

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Social pedagogical assistance; Social pedagogue; Socialinis pedagogas; Socialinė pedagoginė pagalba; The comprehensive educational institution; Švietimo įstaiga; Bendro lavinimo institucija; Educational institution; Social pedagogical assistance; Social pedagogue; Socialinio pedagogo pagalba; Socialinis pedagogas.

ENThe object of this article is the profession of social pedagogue in Lithuania and its development after introduction of social pedagogues in Lithuanian educational institutions since 1991s. The objectives of the research is as following: 1) to analyze changes of socialpedagogue position in Lithuanian schools from its appearance to the present day; 2) to overview provisions of national legislation which regulates the work of social pedagogues in educational institutions; 3) to provide and survey the demographic data of Lithuanian social pedagogues who works in comprehensive educational institutions. The research was based on both theoretical (analysis and synthesis, systematic, comparative, historical methods) and empirical (generalization of professional practice, analysis of statistical data) research methods: The article consists of introduction, three chapters and conclusions. Importance of the research article which is provided in this article is justified by the fact that while various authors have analyzed the practical work peculiarities of social pedagogues in Lithuania, no detail analysis was given about transformations in legal regulation of this profession and the statistical data which describes numbers of social pedagogues and their socio-demographic characteristics. The completed analysis leads to the conclusions that from 1990 to 1999, the social pedagogue s position was not fully integrated into the common educational system. However the demand of social pedagogues is increasing and this position is increasingly stated to gain ground in the educational system ofLithuania, especially when the relevant legal basis for the operation of social pedagogues was created (since yrs. 1999-2001). [From the publication]