INSTITUTIONALIZED CHILD CARE IN URBAN SOUTH AFRICA

was never entirely certain whether they were asking me if I was returning to the United
States or simply if I was going back to the guest flat where I stayed. This, however,
seemed to reveal that the coming-and-going of different volunteers and international
visitors was fairly common, and that the kids had developed their own expectations for
these interactions. While I didn’t observe anything more oppositional or unruly, I
considered that this was likely a matter of timing. Even the newest children at the center
had lived there for over a year, and the center had recently done away with its creche,
raising the lowest age at the center to five years. At most, some of the children
demonstrated developmental delays in communication and a greater tendency towards
mood swings.
It was in this age group that children typically received the most therapeutic
interventions. A clinic called the Emthonjeni Centre provided the center’s children with
play therapy, psycho-educational assesments, and speech and language assessments.
Children under six years old received a comprehensive Early Childhood Intervention that
focused on physical skill development along with psychological coping. Hearing and
language development were often coached by a Speech and Language Therapist from
Wits University, as this was an area that was commonly underdeveloped. Again, it was
difficult from my vantage point to observe this, anticipating communication to already be
more difficult due to the language barrier.
5Cees acts assertively in finding the clincal treatment that each of the children need,
particularly early on. On-site, Nancy Mudau is the one primarily tasked with the
monitoring and treatment of children’s psychosocial wellbeing. This is one task,
however, she must balance with many of her other requirements, including navigating the
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