THE SCHOOL AS A DEMOCRATIC MICROCOSM: INCLUSIVE PRACTICES THAT TRANSFORM SOCIAL EXCLUSION INTO BELONGING

Abstract

The Brazilian public school occupies a central position in the debate on the democratization of access to knowledge and the construction of belonging bonds among historically marginalized students. This study analyzes the school as a democratic microcosm, examining how inclusive pedagogical practices reorganize power relations and transform social exclusion dynamics into concrete experiences of belonging. The research adopts a qualitative approach, of basic nature and exploratory character, developed through systematic bibliographic review in journals classified as Qualis A1 and A2 by CAPES, published between 2021 and 2024. The results demonstrate that the articulation between culturally oriented curriculum, democratic management, and assistive technologies produces objective conditions for overcoming structural barriers that obstruct the full participation of students with disabilities, gender dissidents, and underrepresented ethnic-racial groups. The analyses indicate that Brazilian legislation, although it provides a robust normative framework, does not automatically translate into transformative pedagogical practices, requiring continuous teacher training and institutional commitment. The study contributes to the field of inclusive education by articulating complementary theoretical perspectives that support the construction of a genuinely democratic school. The findings reinforce the understanding that belonging is not a spontaneous outcome of physical inclusion, but rather the result of intentional, politically grounded, and pedagogically coherent institutional decisions that place the student at the center of the educational project.