Allison D. Evans & Ian M. Hartshorn

ABSTRACT

As conventional forms of wealth redistribution have diminished under the neoliberal consensus of both Democrats and Republicans in the United States, education reform has become a bipartisan issue. Elite rhetoric on education has often focused on it as a “silver bullet” that cures any number of social ills. This logic ties it closely to a number of positive social outcomes like economic and workforce development and crime reduction. We analyze the value of education as a redistributive mechanism, and trace how invoking education as the silver bullet is closely tied to cuts to social spending. Through a paired comparison of two US states: Nevada and New Mexico, we demonstrate that education interventions are most directed at those educational institutions most successful at promoting social mobility, and that “education as the silver bullet” rhetoric is used as a cover for cuts to the broader social safety net.

From: New Political Science 2021 43 (3)

Editor: Wang Yi