ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. Special Educational Needs
This article is part of the Research TopicCultural and Contextual Challenges in the Inclusion of Children with Developmental DisordersView all 13 articles
Barriers to Inclusive Education and Support Services for Children with Autism and Developmental Delays in Brazil
Provisionally accepted
- 1Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil
- 2Universidade Federal do Parana, Curitiba, Brazil
- 3Universidade Positivo, Curitiba, Brazil
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Background: Brazil, the largest nation in South America and the fifth largest in the world, lacks sufficient data to inform its policies and practices in serving the needs of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and other neurodevelopmental delays (NDD). While an old study in a confined geographic region estimated an ASD-like diagnosis at 27.2 per 10,000 children, it is likely that the number of children with ASD has continued to grow, as observed in developed countries. A few studies have attempted to understand the needs of families of children with ASD in Brazil. A literature review identified parental barriers in access to timely diagnostic services, increased family stress, and difficulties in accessing health, educational, and social services as key challenges in caring for children with ASD. Despite recent legislative efforts to improve services and promote inclusive practices, contemporary empirical data on the needs of children and families using large community-based samples remain non-existent. Leveraging a community-based survey, this study aims to characterize the needs of caregivers/parents of children with ASD and NDD in Brazil, with particular attention to access to inclusive education and supportive services. A comparative approach also helps highlight the unique challenges experienced by children with ASD.
Keywords: autism, Developmental delays, diagnostic, Education, Family needs, inclusion
Received: 30 Sep 2025; Accepted: 05 Jan 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Minetto, Choinski, Matos and KRUSZIELSKI. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Maria de Fátima Joaquim Minetto
Elyse Matos
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