O lugar da criança com transtorno do espectro autista – uma avaliação de pós-ocupação de salas de aula em Santa Maria/RS

Abstract

School environments have much more than the function of housing the teaching activities carried out there, they serve as a place of social reference, reception, motivation and inspiration. Individuals with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have different characteristics that mainly compromise their social relationships, processing of stimuli and even their language. This research seeks, through a Post-Occupancy Assessment, to understand how the classroom space can be inclusive or exclusive for children with autism, in the light of environmental psychology, universal design, accessibility and sensory design, thus enabling an improvement of these spaces so significant throughout human development. To make this tangible, the methodology presents three distinct and correlated steps: (1) Bibliographic Review bringing theoretical basis on the mentioned themes, (2) Systematic Literature Review on the production in postgraduate programs on the subject. (3) Post-Occupancy Assessment with the following methods: Exploratory Visit, Walkthrough, Visual Selection, Semistructured Interview and Poem of Wishes. These analyzes identified aspects of the physical space that contribute or not to the adaptation and inclusion of these children. The data provided information to prepare design recommendations for classrooms that accommodate children with autism within criteria such as: texture, materiality, colors, acoustics, ventilation, lighting, layout and furniture.