Rewi and Cilla
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Rewi is in his first year of school. He is autistic, and his mother Cilla said the Catholic school he attends discriminates against him because of this. She said that in his brief time at the school so far he has been harassed, excluded and bullied.
‘I have arrived to find my son under the table and five teachers standing in the classroom surrounding him. He is traumatised and is already asking if I could just teach him,’ she told the Royal Commission.
When Cilla enrolled Rewi, the principal assured her the school would be able to cater for his needs. But she has found staff have a very poor understanding of the support Rewi needs and how to provide it. Rewi has been sent home from school because of his behaviour almost every day.
The school principal has advised Cilla that Rewi would be better off in a special school for autistic students. Cilla feels Rewi has not been given a chance. Because he has been sent home so often, he has been at school less than half the time. As a result, he doesn’t yet fully understand school routines.
But the school’s attitude is ‘too bad, move on’, said Cilla. ‘[Rewi] is high functioning. He can talk, can count, knows his ABCs, is starting to read. He needs the right support and someone who can see the world from his point of view.’
For example, the school doesn’t seem to understand that consistency is very important to Rewi. A particular teacher is supposed to meet him at the school gate and, Cilla said, this might change if the teacher is away or unavailable. But sometimes another teacher is there or several teachers, or something else is different – ‘And they wonder why the day doesn’t go well.’
Unexpected change puts Rewi ‘out of sorts straight away’, Cilla said.
‘They don’t think anything of it, but it is a big deal to him.’
Often, misunderstandings lead to punishment.
One morning Rewi thought he was going to be playing sport straightaway but it was scheduled for the afternoon.
‘He is just excited for sports and wants to go, he cannot understand why he cannot,’ Cilla said.
The incident spiralled out of control and Rewi ended up hitting out at a teacher and being suspended.
‘The hitting is a flight or fight reaction because he is scared, not because he is naughty,’ Cilla said.
Cilla wants teachers to be better trained in how to educate kids like Rewi. She wants to stop school principals ‘pissing in our pockets’ by promising support and care they don’t provide, who are ‘only interested in your child if things run smoothly’.
‘I hope the education department wakes up and stops treating little children with a disability like criminals, punished for things they don’t understand.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.