PATHWAYS TO EQUITY IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION: FLEXIBILIZATION, ADAPTATION OR TECHNOLOGIES?

Abstract

Promoting equity in inclusive education is one of the greatest challenges of contemporary schooling, especially in the face of persistent homogenizing pedagogical practices that hinder the full participation of students with different characteristics, rhythms, and ways of learning. In this context, terms such as curricular flexibilization, pedagogical adaptation, and educational technologies have gained centrality in educational discourse and school practices. However, although these concepts are often mobilized as responses to diversity, they are not always understood in their theoretical and operational specificities, which may generate misunderstandings, oversimplifications, and, in some cases, new forms of exclusion. This chapter aims to critically analyze these three pathways, discussing their foundations, differences, and possibilities in addressing educational inequalities. It is a theoretical essay grounded in authors from inclusive education, educational technologies, and public policy studies, especially Mantoan, Mendes, Glat, Pletsch, Booth, Ainscow, Holmes, Tuomi, and UNESCO documents. The analysis is based on the understanding that equity is not synonymous with equality, since it requires recognizing differences among learners without turning them into justification for curricular lowering. It is argued that curricular flexibilization supports the diversification of teaching and learning processes; pedagogical adaptation may be necessary in specific cases, provided that it does not compromise the right to knowledge; and educational technologies, including those based on artificial intelligence, expand possibilities for accessibility, personalization, and participation, but require critical, ethical, and pedagogically guided use. The chapter concludes that equity in inclusive schooling does not result from the isolated adoption of a single resource or strategy, but from a broader reorganization of school culture, curriculum, and teaching practices aimed at building more just, responsive, and democratically committed learning environments for all.