GEOGRAPHY OF DISABILITY: SOCIOECONOMIC MAPPING OF PUBLIC SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS IN THE MUNICIPAL EDUCATION NETWORK OF VIANA - ES
Name: GABRIELA RONCATT FERREIRA DE SOUZA
Publication date: 19/11/2025
Examining board:
Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| CARINA COPATTI | Examinador Interno |
| DOUGLAS CHRISTIAN FERRARI DE MELO | Presidente |
| ERNANDES DE OLIVEIRA PEREIRA | Examinador Externo |
| RAFAEL DE CASTRO CATAO | Coorientador |
Summary: This research aims to analyze the socioeconomic context of students who are part of the Special Education Program in the Municipal School Network of Viana– ES. The guiding question of this research project is: How does the socioeconomic context of students in Special Education affect public policies for Special Education in the municipality of Viana–ES? The research project will be conducted over a period of 24 months, divided into four stages, adopting a qualitative and quantitative methodological approach, with bibliographic, documentary, and exploratory analysis. Within this context, the research subjects are all students in the Target Group of Special Education enrolled in municipal schools in Viana–ES, along with their respective socioeconomic characteristics. The theoretical foundation for the concepts of geography, place, territory, and space is based on four works by Milton Santos (1977, 1988, 1997, and 2006), and the geopolitical perspective draws on two works by Gramsci (2006 and 2022). With regard to Special Education, the reflections are guided by the philosophy of praxis and the concepts of education, the unitary school, the expanded and unitary State, as well as Gramsci’s (2022) notion of the formation of the integral human being and his interlocutors, including Nosella (2016), Soares (2000), and Silva (2020). The research is also aligned with public policies that strengthen Special Education from an inclusive perspective, such as the 1988 Federal Constitution, the National Education Guidelines and Framework Law (LDB/1996), Law No. 13.146 of July 6, 2015 (the Brazilian Inclusion Law – LBI), and the United Nations Human Rights principles. The results obtained indicate that the Geography of Disability, derived from the field of Health Geography, originated with tactile cartography (tactile maps) and is structured around five dimensions that contribute to the analysis of the social space of persons with disabilities. The educational product generated will provide the basis for the development of public policies aimed at ensuring human rights, particularly the right to education in the municipality of Viana–ES. Thus, the research is innovative in combining Gramsci’s Political Geography with maps, data, and population, socioeconomic, spatial, and territorial research in the construction of public policies for Special Education from an inclusive perspective. This highlights the multidisciplinary nature of the Geography of Disability, emphasizing the importance of understanding the socioeconomic context of students in the Target Group of Special Education in biopsychosocial assessment, in the guidance, planning, and funding of Special Education, as well as contributing to the critical reflection of teaching praxis from a unitary perspective.
