Do You Believe in Miracles?
Dear Deborah,
One of the central claims of the corporate-reform movement is that poverty is not destiny and that a school staffed with great teachers can eliminate poverty. This is a very appealing sort of rhetoric because we all harbor the hope that every single person can overcome the obstacles of poverty to achieve success in school and in life.
Surely, we treasure the American dream that people who grow up in poverty may go on to achieve outstanding success in their lives (even though social science says the odds favor those who have money, education, and privilege). For some people, this trope also has the appeal that we can ignore poverty, cut taxes and spending, and just concentrate on closing schools, opening charters, giving out vouchers, putting kids online without teachers, increasing class sizes, or launching a new teacher evaluation scheme.
We know that there is a strong and undeniable correlation between family income and test scores. This
