Hysteria or spiritual calling at schools?

AS REPEAT incidents of “ancestral callings” continue to disrupt schools in the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, appeals for concrete plans to address the phenomenon have polarised the sector.

An ancestral calling happens when ancestors call on an individual to become a sangoma or a diviner.

The KZN Education Department called for public submissions on ways to deal with the impact ancestral callings have on teaching while the Western Cape department has consulted with the Department of Cultural Affairs to come up with a plan.

But the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) has shot down this proposal, stating that ancestral callings must be dealt with by parents and not schools and teachers.

A clinical psychologist has also weighed in on the incidents and has suggested that this was mass hysteria and that an extreme form of a psychological phenomenon known as groupthink might be at play. A simple assessment could determine the validity of the incidents.

The Western Cape has dealt with a handful of cases involving the alleged ancestral callings that have led to disruptions at schools and parents being called to fetch their children.

In the latest incidents, 10 children were said to be affected by the calling, where they appeared to be having fits or seizures at Kulani Secondary School in Langa on Thursday.

A learner at Kulani told Weekend Argus that learners who were affected by this said they felt a burning sensation on their chests, and were told by voices to lock up a snake.

The learner said it seemed as if the voices were jumping from one learner to another.

In a video that Weekend Argus has seen, learners are seen having a fit on the ground, held down by men and women praying over them.

Screams can be heard in the background while other learners fall to the ground.

Western Cape Education Department (WCED) spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said the learners allegedly reacted to a spiritual calling.

“This led to several learners collapsing or reporting that they were feeling ill.

“Paramedics were dispatched and assessed several learners of which three have been transported to a medical facility for further assessment,” said Hammond.

Counselling support was arranged for the school.

Hammond said they had engaged with the Department of Cultural Affairs for a broader discussion on the matter and its management at schools.

Popular spiritual healer Gogo Dlamini said the incident in Langa had nothing to do with the calling, but could possibly be linked to an evil spirit that was attacking the learners.

She said ancestral callings were only experienced by the individual affected, not a group.

“But if there is an evil spirit it will latch on to many people that are in the same place at a particular time and that does not mean they have a calling.”

Clinical psychologist Ivan de Klerk said the possibility of groupthink also could not be ruled out.

Groupthink is a case of mass hysteria where group members all develop a common fear that often spirals into a panic.

De Klerk said while ancestral callings were a reality, groupthink usually happened in a manner that seemed to be contagious.

“For instance, when one learner spreads a rumour that there is a gas leak in the class, and another learner suddenly smells the leak and feels sick.

“Basically someone is affected by mass hysteria. They forget who they are, they adapt to what the rest of the group believe and follow their morals.”

De Klerk said there were ways to establish whether an incident was linked to groupthink.

“What must happen is reality testing, where you can determine if what the person is experiencing is real or not, so you separate them from the group.

“This normally helps them snap out of the spiral.”

ANC education spokesperson in the Western Cape Khalid Sayed said the increase in these incidents should prompt the WCED to engage with traditional healers and churches.

“The interaction will help to broaden their understanding of these issues as well as to understand how to better respond and/or prevent such incidents from taking place,” he said.

ACDP leader Reverend Kenneth Meshoe said: “If they believe that’s ancestral calling, then their parents will deal with that – not schools, not teachers.

“Suggesting that children can receive an ancestral calling in school, and if they get (it) in school, teachers must be able to assist them is totally unacceptable.”

Basic Education spokesperson Elijah Mahlangu said the ACDP totally missed the point of the KZN Education Department’s proposal.

“In fact they should be ashamed as an organisation for deliberately misleading the public in such a manner.

“There is no change in policy so that the education department can teach ancestral callings.

“It’s a simple conversation with members of the public where the MEC of KZN is saying let’s talk so that we can have a fruitful discussion to come up with solutions.”

The African National Healers Association’s Mkhulu Langa said with an African spiritual awakening occurring the events cannot be dismissed as a social media trend.

“We need to start educating people around the concept of idlozi (an ancestor) in order for us to have a fruitful conversation where we can differentiate between idlozi and evil spirits.”