This article examines the impact of Chile's educational reform on the development of mathematical, verbal, and spatial aptitudes among secondary students in science and the humanities at municipal schools; emphasis is placed on improving public efforts in contexts with a high index of educational vulnerability. The discussion is based on the results of longitudinal research, with a non-experimental design, that included 2,854 students from the province of Curicó, Región del Maule, Chile. The results show no significant differences (p > 0.05) between the skills of students who graduated according to the unreformed curriculum design and students who followed the terms of the new policy. The only differences observed were in arithmetic skills. In synthesis, the study reveals information on the impact of Chile's educational reform on the quality of student learning, while permitting benefits for users of public education.