O atendimento educacional especializado nas escolas de educação infantil do município de Caxias do Sul/RS

Abstract

This master's research, developed in the Graduate Program in Education at Universidade de Caxias do Sul, investigates the regulation of the Specialized Educational Assistance service (Atendimento Educacional Especializado - AEE) in childhood education, focusing on shared-management schools in the municipality of Caxias do Sul. The general objective of the study is to analyze how normative documents and the perceptions of participants express and guide the Specialized Educational Assistance (AEE) service in childhood education within shared-management schools in the city of Caxias do Sul. The theoretical framework is grounded in Vygotsky's historical-cultural perspective, emphasizing the concepts of mediation, Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), and the qualitative view of disability (defectology), articulated with the sociology of childhood and the concept of childhoods in the plural. Methodologically, this is a qualitative and exploratory study that employed documentary research at the federal, state, and municipal levels, as well as open-ended questionnaires administered to two managers from the Municipal Department of Education (SMED) as sources of evidence. Data treatment followed Laurence Bardin's Content Analysis, structured in the stages of pre-analysis, material exploration, and treatment of results through inference and interpretation. In Caxias do Sul, AEE is organized through a consistent normative framework centralized in the actions of SMED, which is responsible for pedagogical management, guidance, and supervision, although Municipal Education Council Resolutions No. 35/2017 and No. 37/2017 are perceived as outdated in relation to current demands of Inclusive Education. The analysis identified a persistent tension between the social model of disability, legally prescribed, and a medical-centered perspective that still prioritizes clinical diagnosis over functional pedagogical assessment in everyday school practices. The conclusions indicate that shared teaching emerges as the most effective strategy for inclusion in Early Childhood Education, although it is hindered by the lack of institutional time for collaborative planning, limited physical infrastructure, and weaknesses in the specific training of professionals. The study highlights the urgency of strengthening collaborative work and updating local regulations to ensure that inclusion is effectively implemented as a full right to participation and learning from early childhood onward. [resumo fornecido pelo autor]