To give to others what was given to me
To give to others what was given to me
“My childhood was not easy at all. One day, it was suggested that I go see a social worker, and I told him everything. He went back to my house with me and talked to my father the whole night. After that, my father never hit me again. I found that so spectacular, I said to myself that later, I would become a social worker to give to others what was given to me that day.”
Florence takes me through her daily life as a social worker at ACTION ENFANCE, in the Children’s and Teenager’s Village in Villabé, France: “Welcome to the Butterfly Pavilion! I live here every other week with six children aged eight to eleven. We accompany them to school, for sporting activities, to their friends’ homes for birthday celebrations, to mediated visits,* or for appointments with the speech therapist, the dentist, or the psychologist.
Here, we also play games, and go on outings, and trips. Last year, we went to Auvergne because volcanoes fascinate them. I also record how the children feel each day— their anger, their joy, their questions… And there is a lot of administrative work. Right now, for example, I have a report to finish. This requires time and thought, but doing it allows me to compare notes with colleagues on any observations, discontent, or progress made, and to find a solution.
For maintenance and cleaning at the Pavilion—which each child also participates in according to their age—we’re so lucky to have a magnificent housekeeper, Cécilia. She really helps improve the children’s manners. There is also a teacher that is a part of the support staff, and backup social workers who intervene as needed, for instance, to take care of the children when we are outside, or to manage budding conflicts. We complement one another. We work together like parts in an engine.”
“What you’re telling me makes me think of an African proverb: It takes a village to raise a child.”
“Exactly! Here, that’s really true.
And if sometimes I feel tired, I’m re-energized by all the little moments of happiness with the children. With them, it’s like a permanent renewal.
And I love their stories and their funny faces, or when they try to hide something from me, putting all their effort into their charms to placate me and then say: ‘Come on, how did you see that?’
They could not imagine how well we know them. Each one of them has their talents, one has a better attention span than the others, another has a great sense of humor and a real talent for imitations, and yet another has an insatiable curiosity, coupled with a good memory…
There are also these stages that I see them go through at school. They’re really proud when they manage to understand a math problem or a French question, or when they receive a good grade where they were once struggling, and I am so proud of them! I see that determination to make it through, to learn and discover. A young girl can be a top athlete and also take part in the Youth Municipal Council.
As it happens, not a week goes by without a big problem. Last weekend for example, I spoke to a child that I had punished by taking away his screen time. I said: ‘Come on, we need a little breather, we’re going to go have some fun at the movie theater!’ You should have seen his smile!
When the children make mistakes, I correct them, I reprimand them if needed and above all, I make sure to help them to understand what they did wrong. It’s important that they use their mistakes to move forward without being disappointed in themselves. It’s all part of the learning process.
I sometimes talk to them about my experience. To be honest, I got less than 12 in Math!1 I had to take tenth grade twice, and I never completed my bac.2 I was too preoccupied with my problems at home to concentrate on school. Today, however, I have earned a diploma in Special Education after a VAE3 and BTS4 in the Social Work field.”
“You considered going into this profession when you were very young— how long did it take before you were able to practice within the field?”
“Because of my chaotic schooling, I was told I should become a receptionist. But I had always kept the idea of becoming an educator in my mind, and the day I had the opportunity to advance towards it, well, I did.
Here is what I explain to the children: ‘Never tell yourself that you’re useless otherwise, you will begin to put up barriers. Of course, if you threw a ball and you knew it was going to break something, what you did was bad, period. But we are not useless, we were not born useless. If there’s something that you can’t do now, that doesn’t mean that you’ll never be able to do it. Sooner or later, you will be able to do something with your lived experience as it is today.’”
* Mediated visits are organized to allow parents and children to meet in the presence of a third party.
Translated into English by Alissa Pray, Salem State University, 2023
1 The French grading score relies on numbers 0-20, with 0 being the worst grade one could receive, and 20 being the best. When students receive a cumulative overall average at or above ten, they have passed and can move on to the next schooling period.
2 The bac, or baccalauréat is a large exam that French students must pass in order to attend Higher Education programs.
3 The VAE, or Validation des Acquis de l’Expérience is a special diploma that recognizes prior education and allows individuals to attend certain degree programs, without completing the bac.
4 A BTS or Brevet de technicien supérieur is a type of degree which involves two years of further study after the bac exam.
