Vivências de pessoas com deficiência no Ensino Superior no Maranhão

Abstract

The number of enrollments of people with disabilities (PwD) in higher education, as indicated by the last Higher Education Census (INEP/2023), was 0.8% compared to the previous year (2022). Analyzing academic experiences from a historical, social and cultural perspective implies considering the individuality and diversity present in social relationships and the specificities external to the PwD audience when they go through this level of education. Educational environments, fertile locus for social interactions, play a central role in realizing the principles of Inclusive Education, building democratic spaces and promoting dialogues that consider historically marginalized groups. The objective of this research was to understand the experiences of these students in basic schooling and higher education based on an analysis of the schooling process and the support network institution, including mapping the characteristics of access and retention in higher education. Qualitative in nature, this work is based on Vygotsky's epistemology, which considers the study of human characteristics based on a procedural, historical and dynamic analysis, deepening critical analyzes of human development. Understanding how PwD experiences their academic trajectory requires considering how society, its historical specifications and which adjacent conceptions on the part of people without disabilities imply developments that become facilitators or not for the formation of this population. 15 students with disabilities participated, of which only seven met the research criteria and attended at least 50% of their Higher Education course. Semi-structured interviews were carried out, both in person and through the Google Meet platform, to provide greater flexibility to participants. The research was divided into two stages: the application of a sociodemographic questionnaire via Google Forms and the elaboration of a reflective memorial composed of an authorial reflection on the trajectory of life. The selection of participants began with the dissemination of an informative card on social media, using the Snowball sampling technique, in which the first interviewee indicated others with similar characteristics, applying the access network to PwD students. To analyze the results, four thematic axes were defined: (1) characteristics of the educational institution in the trajectory of basic schooling; (2) experiences in basic education; (3) experiences in higher education; and (4) developments in educational policies for access and retention of PwD in higher education. Four zones of meaning were constructed: (1) educational inclusion: pillars of relevance in the development of learning; (2) beyond the books: navigating the corridors of elementary school and revealing the influence of the school environment; (3) the epic challenges and discoveries of PwD in higher education; and (4) formal and structural aspects related to access and retention of students with disabilities in higher education. The information collected indicates that the experiences have a direct influence on the development and teaching-learning processes of individuals. The study showed us that stigma regarding disability persists, influencing social interactions and making it difficult at times to construct the identity of students with disabilities and the scarcity of resources and assistive technologies can also contribute to the difficulties faced by students. Therefore, it is essential to problematize issues about effective inclusion and pressure Higher Education Institutions to adopt measures aimed at full participation of people with disabilities in the teaching-learning process.