ORIGINAL ARTICLE
ALVES, Taiane [1], ANTUNES, Maria de Fátima Nunes [2], ARCARI, Inedio [3], CARDOSO, Ronan Guimarães [4], GARCIA, Alexandro Ferreira [5]
ALVES, Taiane. Et al. The role of the family and the educator in the inclusion of students with special educational needs in regular education. Revista Científica Multidisciplinar Núcleo do Conhecimento. Year 06, Ed. 09, Vol. 05, p. 150-162. September 2021. ISSN: 2448-0959, Access link: https://www.nucleodoconhecimento.com.br/education/the-role-of-the-family
ABSTRACT
This article aims to analyze issues inherent to the role of the family and the educator in the processes of inclusion of students with special educational needs in classrooms in regular education. The family, regardless of its arrangement, is responsible for ensuring material goods and, mainly, affective contributions, thus playing a decisive role in the formal and informal education of their children. The educator is another important agent in these processes, as he/she must act in the development zone close to students with special educational needs, encouraging them to seek autonomy and development capacity. In these meanders, the history of inclusion is also explained a little. Therefore, in order to guide the study, the following question was elaborated: What is the role of the family and the educator in the inclusion of students with special educational needs in regular education? To do so, the method of literature review was used in articles and laws that deal with family, educator, special educational needs and school inclusion. In this sense, it was noticed that, in order to have a complete inclusion, it is necessary the performance of teachers with knowledge and motivation. In addition, family involvement is essential for the personal and cognitive development of this student in the process of inclusion in regular education.
Keywords: Special Education, Teacher, School, Family.
1. INTRODUCTION
It is up to the School Unit to offer educational proposals appropriate to special educational needs and, in this action, to involve students. However, the collaboration of parents, education professionals and government are essential, providing moments of training, in addition to offering physical adaptations to schools to serve these students.
Inclusive Education is a broad subject, which encompasses several individual characteristics of people with special educational needs – physical or mental -, and it can be said that it is an object of study in the field of Pedagogy and that it does not depend only on one factor, but of several, such as family support – affective and/or material -, school accessibility – adequate transport, school with structural or curricular adaptations and others.
The teacher plays an important role in these adaptation processes by acting in the zone of proximal development of students with special educational needs and, if they do not perform their role effectively, it can lead them to give up attending school. In this sense, it is essential that the family acts as an auxiliary in order to guarantee the permanence of their child in school. Certainly, this incentive will favor your journey towards inclusion.
Students with special educational needs should not feel discriminated against by their peers, both inside and outside the classroom, thus harmonizing the student, teacher and community relationship. In this way, a feeling of equality is built, promoting a healthier and more pleasant life in the environment.
Therefore, the main objective of this project is to investigate the role of the family and the educator as adjutants in the process of including students with special educational needs in a regular classroom. Through the literature, this theme also analyzes some issues inherent to the initial and continuing education of educators in the inclusion process. That said, the question is: What is the role of the family and the educator in the inclusion of students with special educational needs in regular education?
The present study is relevant, since it approaches the role of the family and the educator in the formation of the special student in view of the fact that it is in the first age that the formation of his personality occurs. In fact, during this period, he is within the family and, when he enters the regular school, he is usually not very supported by his own family.
2. THE HISTORY OF SCHOOL INCLUSION
In antiquity, people with special educational needs were not well regarded by society, especially in ancient Greece, where the perfect body was idolized, and people with disabilities or madness were abandoned, or sacrificed. Already in Rome, they were killed or contained by a process of purification through which society believed that it was ridding them of evil designs. Thus, the family ignored these impotent human beings, being denied access to services, education and even living in society, in a clear example of discrimination (CORRÊA, 2004).
According to the National Guidelines for Special Education in Basic Education (BRASIL, 2002a), people with special needs were seen as “sick”, “retarded” and incapable, always at a disadvantage. Society assigned itself the role of granting them some kind of charity, which never happened, as they were disregarded as if they had no importance.
Os movimentos internacionais pelos direitos humanos, desencadeados nas últimas décadas do século passado tem propiciado, de maneira crescente, uma visão mais favorável em relação às pessoas com necessidade educacionais especiais (MATO GROSSO, 2002, p. 23).
In contemporary society, it is noted that people with special needs began to be well-regarded due to the advent of valuing the human being. The doors were opened so that these citizens could pass on their knowledge, although they continue to be discriminated against by a portion of society, as well as in certain families and even schools.
On the other hand, school institutions, with an increasing role in inclusive processes, have been implementing an agreement that aims to definitively include students with special educational needs in the school context. According to Mato Grosso (2002), the practice of inclusion is essential, but for this to occur, the creation of social practices with the purpose of respecting human diversities and ending exclusion is substantial.
The structural conditions of schools, such as, for example, an adequate ramp for better accessibility, grab bars in the bathroom, an inclusive curriculum that works on the autonomy of students with needs, are indispensable, as these actions significantly contribute to a dignified education and that serves this group of students. In fact, a planned and adapted school is a way of demonstrating to its students that the results achieved by them are those expected by the teachers, promoting a satisfactory education for all those involved in the school context.
According to the National Guidelines for Special Education in Basic Education (BRASIL, 2002a), this must be formed by actions that improve guidelines, defending special education. Due to the discrimination suffered by students with special educational needs, laws related to human rights emerged, especially the 1948 Declaration of Human Rights (UN, 1948), which guarantees them free public education. These ideas defend the inclusion of this group of individuals, providing them with equal social guarantees while contributing to the development of special classes in public schools in Brazil.
The education of children with special educational needs was strengthened by the national movement to defend the rights of people with disabilities at school, at work and in the community, with the objective of equality and social justice. The National Guidelines for Special Education in Basic Education (BRASIL, 2002a) highlight that the Federal Constitution of 1988, in its article 208, item III, guarantees “specialized educational assistance to students with special educational needs, preferably in the regular education network”.
In effect, laws emerged to increasingly favor the inclusion of those who need differentiated education, providing a more correct way of knowing the right of students in the classroom. Equality and the right to education were certainly milestones that contributed to a more dignified life for all citizens.
Also according to the National Guidelines for Special Education in Basic Education (BRASIL, 2002a), in the history of Inclusive Education, the Salamanca Declaration also stands out, providing access and quality of life to people with educational needs. It took place in Spain in June 1994, reaffirming everyone’s right to education, and was approved by eighty-eight governments and twenty-five international organizations at the United Nations World Conference on Special Education. The aforementioned statement emphasizes that the education of individuals with special educational needs is an integral part of the education system.
In Brazil, according to the PCNs[6] (BRASIL, 2002b), the first special school was created in 1854, known as the “Imperial Instituto de Meninos Cegos”, based in Rio de Janeiro. In 1857, the “Imperial Institute of Education for the Deaf” was founded, also in Rio de Janeiro, under European influence, which propagated the residential school model throughout the country.
With institutions founded in Brazil, inclusive education was structured and qualified to serve students with special educational needs, deterring any type of discrimination, in addition to opening doors to all children. This example of education consists of the use of teaching resources to improve and demonstrate the need for special education for all. In this sense, it encourages the educator to follow his path and the students to achieve their goals. With these arguments, Brasil (2002a, p. 25-26) argues that:
A Educação Básica deve ser inclusiva, no sentido de atender a uma política de integração dos alunos com necessidades educacionais especiais nas classes comuns dos sistemas de ensino. Isso exige que a formação dos professores das diferentes etapas da Educação Básica inclua conhecimentos relativos à educação desses alunos.
Usually, Special Education is seen as an emergency for all schools, always highlighting the needs that students find in the classroom, getting support from people who know how important Inclusive Education is. With so much assistance provided to educational bodies, the achievements of students and educators have been happening; thus, those involved feel encouraged to continue the journey towards a dignified education for all.
3. FAMILY PARTICIPATION IN STUDENT DEVELOPMENT
Carvalho (2007) states that the barriers faced by students with special educational needs in schools is a characteristic of this group, since difficulties are perceived even in the changes that must be made so that they remain included in the school, involving pedagogical practice. Nor can it be ruled out that one of the obstacles these students face is the lack of parental concern. Also according to Carvalho (2007, p. 122), “Families are blamed, because they are absent, unstructured, illiterate or, simply because, as they say, they don’t want to help, they understand that their children’s learning is the school’s task”.
In fact, the family’s participation in the children’s school life is essential for the development of those with special educational needs, because it is in this environment that the desire to learn, the desire to know, arises. Nothing is more meaningful to children than showing what they know to their parents, and parents, in their role, must give adequate attention to children with special needs. This demonstration of interest is essential for their psychological, cognitive, affective and emotional development.
Carvalho (2007, p.123) asserts that the reason the family is not very frequent at school is due to the fact that it is rarely invited to participate in decision-making issues of school management. According to the author, the school is an institution that faces a crisis related to the weakening of its relationship with the parents, who are usually only summoned for interminable meetings or to hear complaints about their children, making this approach an unpleasant action. As a result, those affected do not correctly value the development of their children, who, in turn, face a feeling of powerlessness, which can lead them to lose interest in school, including dropping out, as they do not find support from those who are so in need of their parents.
No imaginário coletivo dos educadores o fracasso é produzido, predominantemente, por ‘culpa’ do aluno que, segundo muitos: é pouco inteligente, com problemas de comportamento, defasado intelectualmente, é oriundo de famílias muito pobres, desajustadas, e sem exemplos domésticos a serem seguidos, como ideais de vida (CARVALHO, 2007, p. 124).
Special students, who tend to drop out of school, should have a closer look at the teacher, who cannot rule out the possibility that some problem outside the school is occurring, such as disaffection within the family, or something more serious. In order for school success to occur in the context of students with special educational needs, it is necessary, first, the love of parents, family and teachers, because without it, they will certainly not achieve educational success.
Carvalho (2007, p.127) also argues that the biggest barrier between the school and the special student and their families is in the Pedagogical Political Project, which should have itinerant teachers for specialized care outside the school environment, such as in hospitals or at home. In turn, the Conselho Nacional de Educação (2006) states that these students, by having contact with the appropriate resources – human, physical, political and others – in schools, will break down the barriers they are still facing.
Thus, it is also up to educators to help break down such barriers, ensuring access to these students with special educational needs in the school environment. For this, they need to gain the support of their family and those around them, especially their classmates, a place where these students find the help they so much need in their daily lives. This process must be permanent; the coexistence of these students in the school environment must be effectively and constantly free from any type of discrimination.
4. TRAINING TEACHERS FOR INCLUSIVE EDUCATION
The teacher, to meet the demand of students with special educational needs, needs to be in search of qualification, because only then will he get a response and acceptance from his students. In addition, it is an action that benefits families working in their children’s school life in the sense of receiving information on how to help them with homework, as well as with regard to the pathology, whose result is an exchange of experiences.
Mantoan and Prieto (2006, p. 56) point out that, in the LDB[7], art. 58, III, “teachers with adequate specialization at a secondary or higher level are provided for specialized care, and regular education teachers, trained to integrate these students into common classes”. Therefore, according to the aforementioned authors, in order to serve students with special educational needs, the teacher must have knowledge in the area to bring to the classroom different forms of pedagogical educational activities, making learning more dynamic and pleasurable for both and, at the same time, time, stimulate student school development.
The training of teachers deserves to be highlighted, since it is through them that the development of students takes place. The Ministry of Education and Culture is an agency that serves schools; therefore, it is up to you to implement programs that transform reality: the existence of professionals unable to work on inclusion, both at the municipal and state levels, giving them full support, as well as the students. According to Sampaio and Freitas (2021, p.21), “It is challenging to work on school inclusion, so making professionals study together will provide, in addition to technical knowledge, the exchange of experience, which will be valid as much as the absorption of concepts by inclusion theorists”.
However, Bruno (2008) considers that public policy actions are complicated and are constantly evolving. Palumbo (1994, p. 350) corroborates this idea by asserting that politics “is a process, a historical series of interactions, actions and behaviors of many participants”. The two authors infer that political proposals are not palpable, and should be understood as a sequence of actions to be carried out by Organs competent bodies over time.
Mantoan and Prieto (2006, p. 58) emphasize that “the knowledge of the theoretical and practical domains of teachers is essential to support the formulation of policies for their continuous training by the education systems”. In turn, Lourenço (2010) assures that teacher training is important; however, it is not enough to build an inclusive school and cites two causes, namely: social and school exclusions do not only involve pedagogical difficulties, but also economic, political, social and cultural ones. Furthermore, although it points out ways that lead teachers to reflect on their practice, to develop more appropriate pedagogical actions, continuing education will not teach them precisely how to proceed, what to do or not to do.
According to the aforementioned author, it is up to the teacher to have an individualized look at each student and, thus, to recognize and perceive their difficulties and limitations regarding learning and create didactic plans aiming to make the understanding of the contents also pleasant and invigorating. In addition, it is important to provide activities to the students of the inclusive school, breaking down attitudinal obstacles and prejudices that, perhaps, harm the development, as well as the relationship of the class in the process of teaching and learning.
According to Lourenço (2010), in order to encourage inclusion, the teacher needs, in addition to continuing education, to have a keen eye for their students and be prepared to plan new strategies. Therefore, he will be able to face the difficulties that appear, given that, in order to work in an inclusive school, it is essential to meet the needs of each class and school as they arise, as it is impossible to know in advance the problems to be overcome. The named author adds that “Inclusion attributes a look to each person as a developing individual, who needs ways to expand their potential” (LOURENÇO, 2010, p. 250). Therefore, it is a movement with the aim of uniting everyone; therefore, we have a very broad mandate, as inclusion, in order to exist, will depend on each one of us.
The teacher’s knowledge of the students in his classroom is important, as it is a way of analyzing what he is transmitting to them. According to Oliveira (2006), the educator wants the objectives to be achieved, being able to take into account the way in which he applies educational practices consistent with student-teacher benefits. Therefore, in contemporary times, teachers who are present in classrooms and their students with special educational needs need to work together with other teachers, using their knowledge to provide teaching/learning.
5. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
A very important factor of inclusion is that it is not an isolated movement, but a mobilization, that is, there is no specific class responsible for it to happen. They are teachers, managers, parents and society that unite to benefit those who are in the condition of students with special educational needs.
Therefore, this article addressed the role of the family and the educator in the inclusion of students with special educational needs in regular education. In this sense, it is known that there are many factors that involve inclusion, such as adequate physical structures, appropriate curricula, among others. However, in this process, it is clear that the family and the educator, as well as the community around them, are indispensable to the lives of these people.
It is concluded, therefore, that the presence of the family is fundamental in the process of inclusion of students with special educational needs. In early childhood, even if they attend school, it is at home that they receive the initial stimuli for their development. Knowing that your family members care is also essential for their involvement in the activities that are proposed to them and that are within their reach.
Concerning the educator, the seriousness of his role in this process is visible, because, despite all the physical, human, documental difficulties, among others, that may arise, he is responsible for the initial role of promoting inclusion. In this sense, together with the family, it overcomes the barriers that prevent students with special needs from being inserted and accepted in the regular classroom.
REFERENCES
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APPENDIX – FOOTNOTE
6. National Curriculum Parameters.
7. Law of Education Guidelines and Bases.
[1] Pedagogue from FCSGN, Postgraduate in Psychopedagogy from FCSGN, Translator Interpreter of Libras, Education for the Deaf.
[2] Doctoral Student in Exact Science Teaching-UNIVATES, Libras Interpreter, Teaching; Inclusion and Deafness.
[3] Doctor in Electrical Engineering – UNEMAT.
[4] Master’s student in Teaching Exact Sciences – Univates.
[5] Master in Teaching Exact Sciences.
Sent: June, 2021.
Approved: September, 2021.
