Formação docente na perspectiva inclusiva de alunos com deficiência intelectual e transtorno do espectro autista: percepção dos professores de educação física

Abstract

Considering the increase in enrollment of students with disabilities in regular public schools, it is difficult to provide truly inclusive Physical Education classes, given that teacher training on the topic of inclusion is sometimes superficial. The objective of this study is to analyze the knowledge of Physical Education teachers in Early Childhood Education and Elementary School in a Municipal Education Network about Intellectual Disability (ID) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) from the perspective of inclusive Physical Education for students who are part of the Target Audience of Special Education (TASE) and to propose training actions that contemplate the care of students with ID/ASD for teachers. This is a qualitative study involving Physical Education teachers who work with students in Early Childhood Education and Elementary School. Data were collected through a questionnaire administered via Google Forms. The data were analyzed using content analysis. Twenty-eight teachers with an average age of 40 years participated in the research. Approximately 89% of the teachers have postgraduate degrees. Regarding their undergraduate education, most of them had one or more courses related to Inclusive Physical Education, although the course titles varied across programs. Approximately 10% of the participants with the longest time since graduation did not have any courses related to the topic. All participants reported having students with ID or ASD in one or more classes, demonstrating the effective increase in enrollment of atypical students in regular education. Among the difficulties pointed out by teachers in working with this group are the lack of supervision by an assistant teacher or support, the absence of practical and theoretical training guidelines, and the shortage of adequate spaces and materials. These observations supported the development of a training course available on the UFSCar Course Portal.