Jillian Tomaselli - Astra School

8/4/2019 Jillian Tomaselli - Astra School

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/jillian-tomaselli-astra-school 1/7

1

Astra School

~Jillian Tomaselli~

In class throughout the semester we studied education and its significant impact on the

past, present, and future of South Africa. We were fortunate enough to continue our analysis of

the education system through first hand observation once in South Africa itself. Our experiences

in the schools with the children, South

Africa‟s future, were some of the most

powerful. One of the first schools we

visited was the Astra School in Cape

Town, which catered to learners with

special needs. This unique school was a

striking example of the complicated issues

surrounding education, which South Africa

must attend to in order to facilitate a

successful transformation. We saw for ourselves the problems that the country must fix in

education, which deepened our understanding of the obstacles.

In every culture, education plays an important role in transmitting values from

generation to generation. It is simultaneously a force of both continuity and change (Johnson

214). This is why the education system is South Africa‟s biggest challenge to overcome, but also

its greatest opportunity to successfully transform. Once the problems have been resolved, the

education system can be used to instill and pass on values of the new democracy to future

generations of South Africans. In our study of the past, we saw that education was the

“keystone of apartheid” (Johnson 214). During that era the school system was distorted and

manipulated into a tool used to enforce apartheid policies. Social stratification was ingrained

Our group in front of the Astra School in Cape Town

Photo Credit – Nancy Lory



2

into the minds of students not only through the physical separation of schools, but through a

curriculum which carefully manipulated young learners.

South Africa now works towards a system of inclusion and equality. White Papers have

been written, laying out an ambitious plan to amalgamate the fragmented system

(http://mg.co.za/article/2005-12-05-a-school-that-fits ). However, the Astra School

demonstrated many of the problems that still exist and make education one of South Africa‟s

biggest challenges. Inclusion and equality

applies not only to race and socio-economic

standing, but disabilities as well.

The Astra School is a public school that

caters to students with an extremely broad

range of both physical and mental disabilities.

It boasts comprehensive care for its learners; it

provides everything from occupational and

physical therapy to housing for those students

who come from far outside Cape Town. It is a

school like no other I have ever seen or heard

of in the United States. We were all impressed

by the measures taken by the school to create a

successful and comfortable learning environment

for their special students, especially considering

the variety of disabilities they dealt with. The

concept of a public school just for children with

disabilities sent our minds spinning, thinking

A poster of the Astra School Song posted in the

main lobby

Photo Credit - Nancy Lory

http://mg.co.za/article/2005-12-05-a-school-that-fits






3

about all of the issues, but also all the benefits, to such a school. It‟s difficult to comprehend

fully. On top of this, they were underfunded. I visited a unit classroom that consisted of no

more than seven kids, and yet the teacher was not provided with enough pencils for all of

them. I can‟t imagine having to teach a group of young kids without even the necessary

supplies to keep them all on the same page. And yet, the teacher still had control over her class

and each student was busy and productive with something. Despite the challenges, the Astra

School seemed to function well and the children were happy, comfortable, and successful.

Unfortunately, some aspects of the Astra School were uncomfortably reminiscent of the

concept of “separate but equal,” regardless of the school‟s unique accomplishments. The Astra

School is for students with disabilities only, separating them entirely from the rest of the

student population. This has both its benefits and its disadvantages. First off, it is in a way a

continuation of the separation which characterized apartheid. Even if it is well meant in the case

of the Astra School, separate is never really equal and causes problems even if it is meant for

good. It is near impossible to ensure equal resources, teachers and curriculum with such a

fragmented system. Second, children with disabilities should not be separated from their peers

as if there were something wrong with them. During apartheid, non-whites were separated

from whites in all aspects of life because they were seen, treated, and taught that they were

inferior, even subhuman. Walking through the hallways of the Astra School, I was unsure about

how I felt about the separateness. It was very different from what I experienced myself in my

own school, where children with disabilities participated in many of the same classes, clubs and

sports teams as the rest of the student population. Special needs learners should be

participating in the same system so that they do not risk seeing themselves as outcasts, but

instead as part of the population. This leads to the next argument for inclusion. Students with

disabilities and typically functioning students should have the opportunity to interact. In his



4

article Education: the Keystone of Apartheid , Johnson states that children do not see color.

Children are not born with negative illusions of racial and social stratification. They learn about

these things based on how they are raised and with whom they interact. In the apartheid

system white children never interacted with non-whites; they were taught that non-whites were

inferior and therefore believed them to be. Children who are brought up and educated in a

diverse environment are more likely to be tolerant and accepting of those who are different

than them. Inclusion encourages the development of a tolerant and open minded school

community, which South Africa is in need of. The same is true of all communities, not just

school. Many of the Astra School students are housed at school because they are from outside

Cape Town and unable to commute.

However, it could be argued that this

process sends a negative message. If

children are uprooted from their

hometown and their community and sent

to a boarding school, it may not

encourage an accepting, accommodating,

open minded society. It is also probably

difficult for such young children to be

living far from the support of their family. It is again uncomfortably reminiscent of apartheid

policies, which removed people deemed to be of „undesirable‟ race from their homes and

communities. I couldn‟t help but think of our visit to District 6. This is of course not the

intention of the Astra School system, but there are undeniable negatives to a segregated

education system.

Astra School students in class




5

However, there can be many arguments made supporting the current system. First of

all, it must be considered how underfunded many of the schools in South Africa currently are

and how unlikely it is that public schools be redesigned to be appropriate for such a student

population. The Astra School is special because it provides many unique accommodations

necessary for the education of students with a variety of physical and mental disabilities. It

would be difficult and costly for the average public school to provide the same services, such as

on site physical and occupational therapy. The public school would have to provide the space

and physical resources, as well as space in the schedule to accommodate those students who

need time to take advantage of extra health or learning services. Something as simple as

adding ramps and elevators could be a major obstacle cost-wise. A second issue is that some of

the students at the Astra School

are simply too low functioning to

be mainstreamed. These

students are currently in Unit

classes, which teach and re-

teach them very basic skills.

However, these students are

unable to progress beyond the

basics. They need the attention

and resources provided at the Astra School. It is likely that many teachers in typical public

schools do not possess the special training to teach these students.

A group of Astra School students excited to meet the visitors

Photo Credit – Jillian Tomaselli



6

Finally, the positive atmosphere of the Astra School must be considered. The Astra

School has created a community where their students support each other academically and

otherwise. Walking through the hallways, it struck me immediately that the students all seemed

happy and helpful. They have formed their own strong school community and a confidence that

I could see when students helped other

students in the hallways and especially in

the morning assembly. The assembly

consisted of musical performances of

different groups of students (including our

own rendition of our national anthem). The

audience of three hundred elementary to

high school aged students was impressively

watchful and supportive. In a mainstream

school this may not be the case. There is a

good chance that in a typical school, a child with disabilities could feel separate from the others

still, and may get teased. This is not the case at the Astra School.

The debate continues throughout South Africa (http://mg.co.za/article/2011-05-20-all-

schools-are-not-equal). Are special schools like the Astra School perpetuating the social

inequalities that South Africa has been trying to fight? Or are they providing an essential

resource? Some believe that universal equality is simply unrealistic, and these special schools

provide some of the choice that is so important to a free society. I understand the arguments of

both sides, and yet absolutely cannot choose a side myself. „Complicated‟ does not even begin

to explain it.

Our performance of the American national anthem at

the morning assembly


http://mg.co.za/article/2011-05-20-all-schools-are-not-equal








7

Works Cited

“All Schools are Not Equal.” Mail and Guardian Online . Mail and Guardian, 20 May 2011. Web.

14 July 2011.

Johnson, Walton R. “Education: Keystone of Apartheid.” Anthropology and Education Quarterly

13.3 (1982): 214-237. Web.

Kapilevich, Ami. “A School That Fits.” Mail and Guardian Online . Mail and Guardian, 05 Dec

2005. Web. 14 July 2011.

Jillian Tomaselli - Astra School

Documents

Transcript of Jillian Tomaselli - Astra School