Inclusion of people with disabilities in professional and technological education: an integrative review of Brazilian scientific production (2020–2024)

Abstract

The study aimed to understand how recent Brazilian scientific production (2020–2024) has addressed the challenges and advances in the inclusion of people with disabilities (PwD) in Professional and Technological Education (PTE). To this end, an integrative literature review was conducted, with searches in databases such as SciELO, CAPES Journal Portal, Google Scholar, and national journals, including only studies published in Portuguese from 2020 to 2024. The results highlighted four main thematic axes: (1) public policies and legal frameworks that underpin inclusion in PTE; (2) inclusive pedagogical practices and teacher training to work with PwD; (3) institutional experiences, emphasizing the role of the Centers for Assistance to People with Specific Needs (NAPNEs) within the Federal Network; and (4) persistent barriers — infrastructural, attitudinal, and training-related — that hinder the effective implementation of inclusion. It is concluded that, although there are normative advances and emerging practices, significant gaps remain in teacher training, the effective institutional implementation of inclusive policies, and the participation of PwD in the development of these policies. Inclusion in PTE thus reveals itself as an ongoing process that requires greater coordination between policy guidelines and everyday educational practice.