Citizenship and inclusion: from public policies to the rights of those involved

Abstract

This article reflects a personal need to reflect on the process of school inclusion so that we can then discuss geography teaching. It is worth noting that in Brazil, until the 1990s, the history of educational services for people with disabilities was marked by segregation and/or social exclusion. Since then, educational policy has provided for the inclusion of all students in regular education, considering their distinct physical, linguistic, social, and emotional conditions. Although this represented a quantitative advance, we are still far from achieving quality education for all. Therefore, by integrating students with disabilities into regular schools and classes, we may be reinforcing processes of exclusion and segregation. Therefore, we ask some questions: How does thinking about citizenship reaffirm the needs of students with disabilities, but also of other agents in the intended inclusive teaching-learning process? What do public policies, in the form of laws, say? Based on these questions, we aim to consider the notion of citizenship as a key element for the process of school inclusion. Specific objectives include clarifying the difference between integration and inclusion; to discuss the notion of citizenship relevant to this issue; to highlight some intervening legislation. To this end, we intend to present our understandings regarding public inclusion policies in the form of laws; on inclusion and integration, taking Mantoan (2003), among other authors, as a reference; on disability according to Vygotsky (2011) when he explains defectology; regarding the notion of citizenship with Palma Filho (1998) and Manzini-Couvre (1991).