South Africa’s standard road signage used to indicate the location of a school – as specified by the National Road Traffic Act and Road Traffic Regulations – is nothing more than a teacher pointing at a chalkboard in front of a class of learners.

But one German expat was very taken aback when she noticed the street sign in a context not too common in our country.

Indicating the location of the German International School in Tamboerskloof, the symbol on the sign could be interpreted as a Nazi salute to a crowd, reports IOL:

Awks.

Although seeing the lighter side of it, the German expat took a picture of the scene and posted it to Facebook:

“So apparently these are the governmental signs for private school … they obviously add the respective names on the sign before putting them up. And the teacher is clearly pointing at the blackboard. But with the German school’s name to it … it clearly becomes something else. I find it funny too… very funny actually!

“I find it mind-blowing that the city puts it up and doesn’t see that it’s clearly not the right sign in combo with the ‘German school’ next to it. and further that the German school hasn’t corrected it.”

Of course, as insisted by the City of Cape Town, there is no link between the sign and the “infamous salute used by Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany”.

Rather, the symbol is recognised in a more “educational way”, explains Area North Mayco member, Suzette Little:

“The figurine represents a teacher pointing to a board in front of a class of learners. The symbols used in SADC RTSM were workshopped and agreed to by the various national and stakeholders, prior to inclusion in the manual.”

Suzette further explained that the City has never received a complaint of this kind before.

However, Alexander Kirmse, Headmaster of the German International School Cape Town, says they previously asked for the sign to be changed.

“But the fact is that this is not our sign, it is the official sign for schools. Previously the City has been approached by the former headmaster with a request to change the sign, but to no avail. The matter has not been taken further by us as we feel we cannot expect them to change an official sign just for us.”

Perhaps when new signs are proposed this can be taken into account, and they can use a symbol a little less suggestive of a time we’d rather not associate ourselves with.

[source: iol]