Letramento de surdos: das políticas educacionais inclusivas à prática docente

Abstract

The literacy of Deaf students requires schools to adopt literacy practices that go beyond the exclusive mastery of reading and writing, integrating these skills into an approach based on social practices. For this, the singularities of this linguistic minority must be understood by teachers in order to enable assertive teaching practices. Thus, this thesis aims to analyze teaching practices in the literacy of Deaf students in the early years of elementary education, in two full-time bilingual schools in Maranhão. This study was guided by the central question: how has teaching practice in the literacy of Deaf students in the early years of elementary education been carried out in two full-time bilingual schools in Maranhão? The field research followed a qualitative approach, exploratory and descriptive in nature, with nine teachers participating at this educational stage. All of them took part in the first data collection instrument, the interview, and seven participated in the second, the Conversation Circle. The interlocutors met the selection criterion established for the research: having at least five years of teaching experience. This period was considered relevant as it corresponds to the phase of stabilization and consolidation of the teaching career, when the individual already gathers significant experiences and more structured pedagogical practices. Data were collected through document analysis, semi-structured interviews, the Conversation Circle technique, and field diaries. The results were subjected to content analysis, following Bardin’s (2011) principles, resulting in the organization into different categories and subcategories. Findings show that teaching practice in bilingual settings faces challenges, even with a bilingual curriculum proposal that provides linguistic and cognitive foundations to students and bilingual teachers, since other factors significantly impact practice. Among them are late access to sign language, family absence, age/grade distortions that compromise the acquisition of Libras, reading, and Portuguese writing, as well as the lack of diagnoses of learning disorders associated with deafness, which hinder the development of Deaf students. Furthermore, the interlocutors pointed out that the Municipal Department of Education does not invest in continuing education. Most training initiatives occur through the participants’ own efforts, encouraged by school management. They believe that, since there is no person in the department who understands the reality of Deaf students and deafness, much remains to be done. Participants also complained about the number of projects sent, most of which are disconnected from the school’s reality and the Deaf community. The results indicate that, even with responsible and intentional teaching practices, the literacy of Deaf students still encounters obstacles that go beyond the school walls. Issues such as late access to Libras, lack of accurate diagnoses, and insufficient continuing education for teachers compromise the full development of Deaf students. In this context, it becomes urgent to invest in actions that engage with the reality of deafness, ensuring that public policies provide adequate teacher training so that the implementation and availability of a bilingual curriculum with equitable pedagogical practices fully guarantee the educational development of Deaf students at all levels of education.