To calculate the average annual growth in income per worker due to the increase in education, we need to apply the concept of the Mincer earnings function, which relates the percentage increase in income to the years of education. The general form of this function is:

$\text{Income growth} = e^{r \cdot \Delta E} - 1$

where:

• $r$ is the return on education (typically around 0.10, which corresponds to a 10% increase in income for each additional year of education),
• $\Delta E$ is the change in the average years of education (from 4 years to 12 years in this case).

We are given that the years of education increased from 4 to 12 years, so $\Delta E = 12 - 4 = 8$ years.

Step-by-step calculation:

1. Return on education:
   Assuming the standard return on education is 10%, or $r = 0.10$.

2. Change in education:
   $\Delta E = 12 - 4 = 8$ years.

3. Income growth formula: $\text{Income growth} = e^{0.10 \cdot 8} - 1$

4. Calculate $e^{0.10 \cdot 8}$: $e^{0.80} \approx 2.2255$

5. Final income growth: $\text{Income growth} = 2.2255 - 1 = 1.2255 \text{ or } 122.55\%$

So, due to the increase in education, income per worker increased by approximately 122.55% over the period from 1950 to 2000.

Average Annual Growth Rate:

Next, to find the average annual growth rate over this 50-year period, we use the formula for average annual growth rate:

$\text{Average annual growth rate} = \left( 1 + \frac{\text{Total growth}}{100} \right)^{1/t} - 1$

where:

• Total growth = 122.55%
• $t = 50$ years.

$\text{Average annual growth rate} = \left( 1 + \frac{122.55}{100} \right)^{1/50} - 1$

Simplifying:

$\text{Average annual growth rate} = \left( 2.2255 \right)^{1/50} - 1 \approx 0.0164 \text{ or } 1.64\%$

Conclusion:

The average annual growth in income per worker due to the increase in education is approximately 1.64%.

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Would you like more details on the formula used or have any further questions?

Here are 5 related questions:

1. How does the return on education vary across different countries?
2. What impact does the quality of education have on income growth?
3. Can we calculate income growth with different rates of return on education?
4. How would an increase in education inequality affect income distribution?
5. What other factors besides education influence income growth?

Tip: The Mincer earnings function is a simplified model and assumes that the return to education is constant, but in reality, returns may differ based on education quality, job sector, and region.