Um mergulho nas crenças das mães: navegando nas experiências da inclusão escolar de crianças com deficiência

Abstract

The relationship between family and school has been characterized by encounters, disagreements, and other challenges in the developmental processes of children with disabilities. In this context, analyzing the constitution of this relationship from the perspective of the beliefs of mothers of children with disabilities occupies a central place in this research. This occurs once the way mothers interpret their experiences of motherhood –such as feelings of shock, fear, sadness, stigmas, and prejudices present in society – influences how they construct coping strategies. These strategies include seeking information about disability and relying on formal and informal support networks. These elements can favor the process of acceptance, hope, and redefining their expectations regarding the development of their children. In this sense, this research investigated the beliefs of two mothers of children with disabilities about their children’s schooling process. This allowed for an understanding not only of the challenges experienced in daily caregiving but also of the meanings attributed to motherhood, educational practices, and the condition of disability itself, offering insights for the formulation of policies and psychosocial interventions more sensitive to the needs of these families. Thus, the research objectives were to understand the beliefs of mothers of children with disabilities regarding their children’s learning and inclusion in school, and how these beliefs are/have been (re)elaborated in the face of the school inclusion movement for these children; to analyze and discuss the relationship between these mothers’ beliefs and their children’s school experiences; to problematize school inclusion from the perspective of mothers’ beliefs; and finally, to build subsidies for actions that enable inclusive practices that consider the effective participation of families, specifically mothers. At the end of this research, it is possible to say that I believe the mothers’ beliefs are re-signified as they take the lead and provoke the school (in partnership with the institution or not) to rethink its pedagogical practices, inviting the school team to make new arrangements, as well as reviewing their beliefs about the inclusion movement.