Análise descritiva do tema deficiência nos currículos de graduação da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte

Abstract

Education may contribute with inclusion of people with disabilities in the society in at least two ways. One is to ensure access, permanence and completion of these people in the education system. The other is to teach people without disabilities to coexist and deal adequately with people with disabilities. The challenge of educating people without disabilities is relevant in undergraduate courses. Thus, this work aims to analyze disciplines of face-to-face undergraduate courses at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte – UFRN, Brazil, which address the disability theme. Methodologically, a descriptive documentary study of the university undergraduate curricula was conducted in order to identify which subjects addressed the disability theme between 2008 and 2017. The analysis of disabilities types and themes covered in each discipline allowed us (1) to give an overview of the education offered by UFRN about the disability theme; and (2) to present categories of analysis and forms of data visualization which serve as instruments to analyze the education offered by Higher Education institutions. As results, this preliminary study points out improvement opportunities in the curricula of undergraduate courses at UFRN, mainly through the increasing of the number and diversity of disability types and themes covered by courses. The conclusion is that analyzes and visualizations of information could be carried out with the support of computational systems of academic management, such as the Sistema Integrado de Gestão de Atividades Acadêmicas – SIGAA (Integrated Academic Activity Management System). Similar studies can be an important evaluation tool during Higher Education management for the formation of an inclusive society.