School directors also warned about the lack of resources in schools, where there is a lack of special education teachers, specialized technicians and even operational assistants.
In the survey, 74.3% of schools and groups complained about having few Special Education teachers, a problem that also appears to have worsened compared to last year, when the problem was highlighted by 64% of directors.
Directors have opened vacancies to hire new teachers, but the majority are unable to solve the problem: Almost three out of four schools (71.6%) were unable to recruit any teachers, leaving vacancies empty, mainly to support students in the cognitive and motor domain.
The majority of directors (77%) also say they do not have enough operational assistants. In the schools and groups included in the survey alone, an additional 557 operational assistants would be needed.
“There is still an important way to go”, defended José Feliciano Costa, general secretary of Fenprof, warning of the “already chronic lack of resources in inclusive education”.
“It has been largely thanks to the work of teachers, school management and non-teaching staff – operational assistants and specialized technicians – as well as families, that it is guaranteed that these students continue to have support, but it is often insufficient given their needs”, defended José Feliciano Costa in statements to Lusa.
Often, the success of these students is “the result of the goodwill” of teachers and staff who work beyond their schedule, he lamented.
The lack of resources was a criticism made by Fenprof shortly after the implementation of the current legal framework, from 2018, and after seven years the union structure says that the problem remains.
The problem especially affects the youngest, as the project to create a recruitment group for direct work with children up to the age of six remains on hold, warns Fenprof.