AUTISM AT SCHOOL: points and counterpoints in inclusive school –

1. SUMMARY

As Autism Spectrum Disorder presents several difficulties in human development, it requires the committed work of all professionals involved with education and, above all, the dedication and commitment of their families. The inclusive school is an important factor for the social relationship and development of skills of all students who contemplate it. Therefore, the special educational needs presented by autism as well, as it is considered a disability by law, where it is entitled to make use of all the benefits that inclusion offers in the regular education network. Through a bibliographic work and carrying out a field study, the objective was to analyze the inclusion process in the UEB Dra. Maria Alice Coutinho school, which works with Elementary Education from the beginning to the end, where it was studied how the inclusion of autistic students in the regular classroom and their specialized educational assistance. Through the field study, the main difficulties presented for the inclusion of autistic people in the regular public school in the context of the researched school were identified, considering the points and counterpoints of the inclusive school and the importance of the family x school relationship as a necessary factor for the inclusion of such students.

Key words: Autism. Inclusion. Regular school.

ABSTRACT

The Autistic spectrum disorder due to several difficulties human development needs the work compromised of all professionals involved with education and especially the dedication and commitment of their families. The inclusive school is an important factor for the social relationship and development of the skills of all students contemplating the same. Soon, special educational needs presented by autism too, because it is considered to be a disability for which you have the right to make use of all the benefits that the inclusion in regular education network offers. Through, a bibliographical work and conducting a field study, aimed to analyze the process of inclusion at school UEB Dra. Maria Alice Coutinho, who works with the elementary school from the early years to the finals, where he studied as the inclusion of autistic students in regular room and specialized educational care. Through the field study she identified the main difficulties for the inclusion of autistic in public school of general education in the context of the school investigated, considering the points and counterpoints of the inclusive school and the importance of family relationship x factor necessary for school inclusion of such students.

Keywords: Autism. Inclusion. Regular school.

2. INTRODUCTION

Autism is considered a disorder to the detriment of including Asperger’s syndrome and encompassing various difficulties of human development, thus receiving the term ASD – Autistic Spectrum Disorder.

Nowadays, we live in a time when all environments must work with inclusion, especially in the school environment, because it is there that the individual is prepared to live in society. Inclusion is much more than insertion, it is more than the simple fact of enrolling in school. Inclusion, to really live up to the word said, needs to accompany preparation both by the teacher and the school, which is of great importance for the child’s development, as it is not the autistic individual as studied here who must adapt to the environment , but rather the environment that must be adapted and receive inclusive education, as there are already laws that determine this statement.

The importance of the topic addressed was due to the understanding of the process of inclusion of autistic students in regular public schools and their contributions, since inclusive education is a conquered right and it is the duty of every society to accept and respect differences. In this way, a study aimed at the inclusion of autistic people was raised, as it generates large gaps in what is said in its implementation, as well as the way of accepting and working, which goes far beyond theorizing.

The objective was to analyze the school reality in the inclusive process in the context of autism in the public school, where the inclusion of autistic students in the regular classroom was studied, identifying the main difficulties presented for the inclusion of autistic students in public schools. of regular education, where the importance of the family x school relationship was considered as a necessary factor for the inclusion of autistic students.

The bibliographical study was used as a methodology, initially, followed by field research to confirm and compare the data obtained. And as for the purposes, the descriptive research, with a qualitative approach. The research was carried out through a field study, in which the questionnaire was used as an instrument.

The points referring to autism and its inclusion in the regular public education network will be addressed, in which the study was divided into sections and subsections, starting from the historicity of autism, the second section being the history of autism in chronological order, highlighting the contributions of theorists in the historical process of the addressed topic.

The third section will deal with the legal basis, where it addresses the main laws, declarations and documents, both national and international, competent to the subject of the inclusion of autism in regular schools. The fourth section refers to the knowledge of autism, being divided into two subsections, addressing the definition of autism and characteristics of the behavior that autism presents.

The fifth section will present the inclusive school, being divided into four subsections, addressing the inclusion of the autistic student from the perspective of the public school, presenting the importance of the inclusive school for the development of the autistic, as well as the possible methods educational services that can help in its development, the specialized educational service in the inclusive school, the training of teachers for the inclusive school and the importance of the family x school relationship for inclusion.

The sixth section, refers to the methodology applied in the research, being divided into subsections, where the type of research, the sample and population of the study, data collection and the characterization of the research field will be addressed. The seventh section deals with the analysis of the results applied in the research, based on the theoretical references.

Finally, the eighth and last section, refers to the final considerations, approaching the point of view in relation to the data obtained, positive and negative points of the inclusive school, among other pertinent points.

3. HISTORICITY OF AUTISM

The History of Autism presents great evolutions from its concept to the different ways that it can manifest itself in different individuals, even being confused with other disorders. According to Gómez and Terán (2014, p. 447) regarding the term Autism, they ensure that,

The term “Autism” was named by psychiatrist Leo Kanner based on terminology originally devised by his Swiss colleague Eugene Bleuler in 1911. Bleuler used the term “autism” to describe the withdrawal from the outside world observed in adults with schizophrenia, who tend to delve into your own fantasies and thoughts.

From the involvement with the terminology research on autism that Kanner named, studies have been advancing on the part of other researchers and theorists, interested in seeking more information about its causes and treatments, among many other points that move their inquiries.

In 1943, Kanner had the opportunity to carry out a study with 11 children who presented the autistic condition to which he wrote an article whose title was “The autistic disturbances of affective contact”, however, these children studied by the researcher did not present schizophrenia, because at that time considered himself to be autistic, psychotic and schizophrenic individuals.

It was from Kanner’s studies and research that the first definition of autism was obtained. The word comes from the Greek “records”, which means “own”, someone withdrawn to himself.

In 1947, Bender used the term infantile schizophrenia, as both he and other researchers considered autism as an early form of schizophrenia, thus disagreeing with what Kanner proposed (SALLE et al, 2005).

In 1948, Kanner wrote in his manual of child psychiatry that most of the children who came to him with these characteristics had some things in common, the parents or grandparents were, in most cases, doctors, writers, journalists, scientists and scholars who they had an above-average intelligence and that they also had a certain obsession in the family environment (ORRÚ, 2007, p.19).

According to Orrú (2007), in 1949, Kanner referred to the condition of autism as “Early Infantile Autism”, due to the difficulty of the relationship with the contact with other individuals and their accentuated desire for certain objects and things, their alterations in speech, preventing interpersonal communication.

In 1949, Kanner verified a subtype of autism, “secondary autism”, which according to him appears in the second year of life. “In these cases, children seem to develop normally for eighteen to twenty months, but soon withdraw, lose language, interrupt their social development and reduce normal activities” (GÓMEZ; TERÁN, 2014, p.447).

Still in 1949, Dr. Hans Asperger, an Austrian scientist, used the term “autistic psychosis”, thus referring to children with behaviors similar to autism.

Possibly, both scientists were faced with similar groups, but, due to the different interpretations, the so-called “Asperger syndrome” and “Kanner autism” were formulated to refer to autism of high and low level of functioning, respectively (GÓMEZ ; TERÁN, 2014, p.448).

It was in 1954 that Kanner highlighted “infantile autism” as a psychosis and continued along these lines until the end of his works.

Previously, Kanner identified autism only in individuals who did not suffer from mental retardation, however, later he found the autistic picture in individuals with mental retardation, and it varies greatly from person to person. At the time, it was believed that mental retardation was one of the characteristics of autism, but nowadays it is known that such thinking was not accepted in a closed way.

It is now known that mental retardation is not a feature of the autistic syndrome. However, a large percentage of people with autism may have mental retardation as an associated feature. Often, due to lack of knowledge or lack of a “clinical eye”, there is confusion between mental retardation and autism (GOMÉZ; TERÁN, 2014, p. 450).

According to Orrú (2007), in 1955, the way in which parents treated their children began to be considered and their constant mood swings affected the child, leading to the development of autism.

The fact was due to the troubled or rejected pregnancy that the fetus had gone through, without relating to the mother and,…