“Tell Them I Can Do This Test In Spanish”

This Chapter argues that assessment policies have a troubling impact on bilingual and English language development classrooms. The author makes the case that teacher education can be reimagined as a space in which teacher candidates are guided in the critical work of detecting the mechanisms that perpetuate deficit perceptions and inequities related to literacy education, like those related to assessment. The author offers a transformative teacher preparation approach, emphasizing self-reflection, collaboration, and advocacy, so that all preservice teachers can be prepared to be effective teachers of culturally and linguistically diverse students despite harmful policies.