Borderland education and teacher education reform in California: Unfulfilled promises

Abstract This article examines the gap between the kinds of public schools needed in the borderlands and the current reform initiative in California, with its obsessive compulsive emphasis on high‐stakes testing, standardization, and accountability. Borderlands schools require curriculum and instructional practices that are more closely aligned with the bicultural and bilingual needs of diverse students and communities. However, the current reform movement is likely to exacerbate current social injustices and inequalities by increasing the failure of diverse students as curriculum, instructional practices, and teacher preparation are driven by high‐stakes testing programs. This increasing inadequacy of educational reform is clearly reflected in the recent passage of AB 2042 in California, the new legislation governing teacher preparation in the state. Suggestions are offered in the type of teacher preparation and schools needed for effective borderlands education.