Interviews with 40 students planning to take the General Education Development test disclosed that less than half had been involved with gangs. Most saw urban teachers as powerless, mentioned adverse circumstances and feelings of hopelessness, and viewed the GED program as a rite of passage and achievable goal. (MLH)

The educational reform movement has proven largely irrelevant to urban minority students' needs. Dropout prevention programs have bestowed meaningless diplomas, while side-stepping the root causes of failure and underachievement. Urban high schools are large and impersonal and have a sour, dispirited atmosphere that discourages learning. Clearly,…