As if teachers’ jobs aren’t hard enough, they’re asked to fix poverty, too

Big ideas in public education, such as the Obama administration’s Race to the Top and Teach For America, often say teachers could improve inequality. Dana Goldstein, author of The Teacher Wars, sat down with us to explain why this is magical thinking that’s been around since the 1800s.

For more on public education reform, Goldstein also contributed a feature to Vox on how Teach For America is starting to seriously reform after 20 years of criticism.