National Investment in Education

Both presidential candidates talk about investment in education. Hmmm...Garrett Jones looks at Did Nations that Boosted Education Grow Faster?

Some nations boosted schooling more, some less. How did that turn out?

On average, no relationship. The trendline points down slightly, but for the time being let's just call it a draw. It's a well-known fact that countries that started the 1960's with high education levels grew faster (example), but this graph is about something different. This graph shows that countries that increased their education levels did not grow faster.

That's not very comforting. Or maybe it is comforting...it suggests that whatever the solution is, it's not to throw money at the problem.
Or then again, maybe not?