The role of the Public Defender's Office in implementing the right to inclusive school education for children with disabilities in the public education system in the state of São Paulo Carolina Alves de Souza Lima, Vívian Monsef Castro

Abstract

The number of children enrolled in special education in public and private schools is increasing. However, public policies aimed at promoting the true inclusion of children with disabilities either do not exist or are insufficient, which is especially detrimental to children in vulnerable situations. Thus, this article aims to demonstrate that the work of the Public Defender's Office of the State of São Paulo is essential to the realization of the right to quality inclusive school education for children with disabilities. To this end, the article addresses international and national regulations on the subject, with emphasis on the right to school education and the inclusive education system, and also discusses the work of the Public Defender's Office. It also mentions three legal precedents arising from lawsuits filed by this institution. The methodology used in this article is based on data collection and bibliographic and case law analysis, from a critical-narrative and deductive perspective. In the end, it is concluded that the Public Defender's Office, despite having limited resources, fulfills its mission of ensuring the right to school education for children with disabilities.