THE INCLUSION THAT EXCLUDES: STRUCTURAL LIMITATIONS OF PUBLIC POLICIES FOR STUDENTS WITH AUTISM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Resumen

This article critically analyzes the effectiveness of public policies for the inclusion of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in schools, focusing on the context of public schools in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil). It begins with the recognition that the Brazilian legal system, especially the 1988 Federal Constitution, the National Education Guidelines and Bases Law, Law No. 12.764/2012, and Law No. 13.146/2015, establishes a robust model of inclusive education, based on the right to access, permanence, and learning. However, using a qualitative approach, with document analysis and critical bibliographic review, a significant dissociation between the normative plan and school reality is evident. The results indicate that inclusion has frequently been reduced to the formal insertion of students with ASD into regular classes, without guaranteeing pedagogical support, specialized educational services, or adequate structural conditions. This scenario constitutes what is called "false inclusion," characterized by the maintenance of inclusive discourse without its material implementation. It is concluded that the realization of the right to inclusive education depends on structural transformations in the educational system, involving public investment, teacher training, and pedagogical reorganization, otherwise contemporary forms of exclusion within the school will be perpetuated.