ABSTRACT

Standards-based reform is now a central feature of the education policy landscape.However, fewof the recommendations for implementing standards-based reform have looked specifically at the conditions that would make it an effective strategy for Latinos. This is the case even though the standards-based movement was founded on the recognition that economically disadvantaged andminority children lag behind their more affluent and White peers in most measures of educational well-being, particularly in achievement test scores, and that previous attempts at closing the achievement gap have failed.