Educação inclusiva: das políticas públicas às percepções docentes

Abstract

The intention of this research is to focus on and analyze the public policies in the state of Minas Gerais regarding the Inclusive Education and Special Education in the period from 1990 to 2001. It also analyses comparatively specific contents in our legislation and perceptions of teachers of the State School System in the first years of Elementary School. We aim at getting to know the possibilities and difficulties of social and pedagogical inclusion of students with certain deficiencies. The starting point are personal accounts of seven teachers who work in regular schools and who have students with deficiencies in their classrooms. Documents with public educational policies from the state of Minas Gerais were analyzed and semistructured interviews were conducted with the teachers. The analyses of these policies revealed that the state has been implementing actions in order to develop an Inclusive Education, but these initiatives must be intensified so as to reach a greater number of schools. An analysis of that which many teachers reported demonstrates that many of them feel insecure when working with students who have deficiencies. They believe that it is necessary for them to posses a specialized knowledge in order to educate these students who, in their opinion, should have special classes and schools. This type of service is seen as indispensable and the paradigm of integration, as opposed to inclusion, still remains among these teachers. These results point to a need of significant changes in the educational scenario of Minas gerais. Furthermore, we are able to say that investments in the teachers training, aid services to the students with difficulties and especially a sensibilizing process in the community are also urgently needed so that the culture of exclusion may give way to an inclusive education that is available to everyone.