Concepções de professores de inglês e intérpretes diante das políticas educacionais inclusivas e a prática do ensino de inglês para alunos surdos

Abstract

This study investigates the concepts of English teachers and interpreters regarding the laws and public policies of inclusion in relation to teaching and learning a foreign language - LE - (English) for deaf students in a mainstream education. Given this context we seek to understand the views of these professionals about: (i) the inclusion of deaf students in a mainstream education and the limitations and implications of public policy in this environment, (ii) the occurrence or not of the teaching of English to deaf students exposing the difficulties and suggestions of the teachers during the classes, (iii) how the interaction happens during an English class where we have the presence of English teacher, interpreter, deaf and hearing students. For such purposes, we used the exploratory qualitative method which can be construed as a case study due (two English teachers and two interpreters who work in public education in Goiânia). This research also has as a base the sociocultural theory of Vygotsky (1998), which invests in social interaction as a condition for the development of individuals. We gathered data through observations, interviews, questionnaires and document analysis. The data suggest that all participants are in favor of the inclusion of deaf students in regular classrooms, but showed dissatisfaction with how this inclusion occurs in practice. There is an interest for change and improvement. The data also show some difficulties and limitations in this context, such as the lack of preparation, lack of support from schools and governing bodies, lack of guidance in the PCN-LE, lack of teaching materials and poor conditions of the classroom. Another fact observed was the unanimity among the teachers about the importance of teaching a foreign language for deaf students, since they believe that deafness is not a negative factor in learning a foreign language, but it is a complement to the learning of Libras and Portuguese. We also observed that both teachers, interpreters and hearing students can also take on the role of the more competent peer to provide cues, demonstrations and instructions for deaf students who can thus benefit from the cognitive skills of other children or adults.