Who are practitioners?
Child and youth care work practitioners are employed in a variety of settings. These settings include: early childhood education, residential treatment, group care, community youth services, foster homes, juvenile corrections and programs for developmentally and physically disabled youth. Child and youth care work practitioners are known by many names, including: foster parents, youth workers, recreation leaders, teaching parents, child care workers, group leaders, house parents, detention workers, probation officers, teacher’s aids, shelter workers, child life specialists, mental health workers, psychiatric technicians, community youth workers, school crisis counselors, street outreach workers, and others. All of these practitioners: • Are entrusted with the on-the-spot, hour-to-hour, care, education, treatment or development of children and youth. • Share ethical values and use a common body of knowledge and skills. • Provide nurturing, management and guidance to healthy or ar-risk c
