There’s a long history of political theater ignoring the root causes of American problems in favor of addressing wedge issues that get a rise out of voters. Scores of politicians across the decades have cemented their careers with eloquent platitudes or, more recently, by madly talking over each other and battling the moderator.

During Tuesday night’s presidential debate, many issues voters wanted to hear about remained untouched, including the current and future state of education. Education lies at the root of nearly every social and economic challenge facing the country, but has hardly been a part of the national conversation. In a debate that toiled on for more than 90 minutes, the discussion on schools lasted, at most, two minutes.