Adaptando o espaço escolar: a produção de lugares para uma escola inclusiva

Abstract

The inclusion of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in schools represents a major challenge for the effective implementation of inclusive education in the country, especially in existing school buildings that were not planned from an inclusion perspective. Studies on the disorder indicate that inadequate interaction with the school's sensory environment causes overload and emotional dysregulation, significantly impairing the learning and development of students on the spectrum. Considering the importance of early and comprehensive intervention in the preschool phase to stimulate the development of these children, the predominance of standardized architectural models, and the absence of sensory adaptation strategies in school spaces, this proposal aims to develop hybrid structures combining furniture and space to adapt existing early childhood education school buildings to make them effectively inclusive. The innovation and applicability of the proposal lie in its emphasis on adapting existing buildings, focusing on investigating sensory accessibility, reproducibility, reversibility, and the real-world applicability of adaptable structures that are easy to handle and low-cost. As a final product and result, the aim is to develop a catalog proposing three structures, to be implemented and tested in subsequent research. The impacts of the research encompass sustainability through the optimization and reuse of existing school infrastructure, improvements in the development, learning, retention, and well-being of students on the spectrum, greater support for teachers and professionals in early childhood education, and the dissemination of inclusive practices in public education policies.