A comunicação na relação família e escola: perspectiva de mães de estudantes com e sem deficiência

Abstract

The present study focuses on the relationship between family and school within the context of school inclusion. The overall objective was to compare the perspectives of mothers of children with and without disabilities regarding the communication established between family and school. The study adopts Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Perspective of Human Development as its theoretical framework. To achieve the proposed objective, a descriptive study with a qualitative approach was conducted. The research was carried out in five municipal schools in a city in the interior of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, involving the participation of 10 mothers of students with disabilities (Group 1) and 10 mothers of students without disabilities (Group 2), enrolled in Elementary School. A semi-structured interview guide was used as the data collection instrument. Data analysis was performed using thematic analysis. Regarding communication methods, it was identified that families and schools primarily communicate in person, as indicated by the majority of mothers in both groups, followed by communication via WhatsApp messages, phone calls, and notes. Concerning the situations in which families communicate with the school, participants from both groups reported situations involving negative aspects such as academic difficulties and disruptive behaviors. Regarding the demeanor of family members during communication with the school, five mothers from Group 1 and four from Group 2 described themselves as calm and composed when reaching out to the school, although two participants from each group mentioned feeling apprehensive and emotional at times. Both groups emphasized the establishment of dialogue as a key means to improve communication between family and school. In terms of communication difficulties with the school, all participants from Group 1 highlighted negative aspects, while seven mothers from Group 2 did not mention any difficulties. Additionally, issues such as lack of dialogue and guidance were only mentioned by Group 1. Finally, the lack of response or feedback from the school to family requests, noted as a difficulty by five mothers in Group 1, was mentioned by only one mother in Group 2. Data on communication with the school regarding the teaching-learning process revealed that seven out of 10 mothers in Group 1 are not asked to be involved in monitoring their child's learning process, whereas only three mothers from Group 2 indicated that the school does not engage them in academic matters. In light of the results, it is considered important to implement actions fostering partnership between family and school to enhance this relationship, especially concerning communication.