Interprofessional collaboration in children's services in Czech primary schools: Importance and challenges of the support roles

Abstract

The study focuses on the introduction of support positions in schools within the framework of the ‘Promotion of Equal Opportunities’ project and the challenges associated with their integration. The aim is to identify the challenges socially disadvantaged schools faced when integrating new support positions, such as social educators and inclusion coordinators, into their teams. The data come from 88 semi-structured interviews conducted at the beginning of the project and after 6 months of its implementation. The main issues identified were the accumulation of multiple roles into one person, overlapping competencies and distrust of new, project-funded positions. The study highlights that the effectiveness of support positions depends on a clear delineation of responsibilities, effective communication and support from school leadership.