The 2016 presidential campaign debates have been among the most watched programming on television. That’s something to celebrate: An engaged electorate is good for democracy.

However, the debates don’t always illuminate the most important issues. The men and women running for president have been adept at ignoring uncomfortable questions. And the moderators tend to focus on hot-button issues sure to generate fireworks but sometimes little else.

But as you weigh which candidate to support for president — whether Republican or Democrat — you should know the candidates’ viewpoints on issues relating to education and the labor movement. The president wields a great deal of power in these areas. We need only recall how Ronald Reagan broke the air traffic controllers’ union, George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act that required high-stakes testing in grades 3 through 8, and President Barack Obama’s Race to the Top grants that required states to tie teacher evaluation to student test scores.

You should know where your candidate stands on:

• Funding for public schools. What is the candidate’s record on providing sound funding for schools?
• Charter schools. Does the candidate support expanding charters at the expense of public schools?
• Teacher evaluations based on test scores. Does the candidate support requiring this linkage?
• Teacher tenure. Does the candidate understand and recognize the necessity of due-process rights?
• Unions. What is the candidate’s record on the right to organize?
• The U.S. Supreme Court. Will the candidate appoint justices who support workers’ rights?
• The minimum wage. Does the candidate support raising the minimum wage? To what amount?

There is no better time than now to get a read on the candidates’ true positions. During the primary season, those running for president are still largely addressing their base: the like-minded voters they need to drum up enthusiasm and build the momentum to carry them to the nomination. Once the general election campaign begins, the nominees make a broader appeal to draw in more voters.

The official campaign websites will reveal where the candidates stand on some of these issues. A few of these topics will crop up in the televised debates. But it will take some probing.

For union members and public school educators, the answers to these questions matter.

Choose wisely.