On average, someone with a college degree probably will experience a higher lifetime stream of earnings than someone who only graduates from high school. What we see at the individual level also holds true at the national level. Studies have found that countries with higher levels of education, measured various ways, tend to be countries that experience faster economic growth and achieve higher standards of living.
This common-sense view explains why there is so much angst accompanying the release of the perennial report showing that the United States is not among the elite when it comes to educational attainment. If there is a positive relationship between state-level education and economic growth, the policy debate about how and why we should improve educational outcomes in Missouri takes on an even greater importance.
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