Financial Literacy Classes

Americas debt has doubled over the past several years, and most Americans do not know how to manage their finances. One of the only solutions that come to mind when thinking of how to make the economy better is financial literacy courses. [Thesis] Students should be required to take financial literacy class before graduating high school because [Reason 1] people need to learn how to logically make financial decisions, [Reason 2] and also to prepare people to make important economic decisions in an ever changing economy.

So often we hear about teaching the whole child. Today, more than ever, personal finance knowledge and awareness are a critical part of what it means to teach the whole child.

They must understand budgeting, taxes and banking while avoiding traps like payday loans that prey on the poor and uninformed. Despite this, only five states require students to take a stand-alone semester financial literacy course, so school districts simply don’t offer one. Campaigning for FBLA national office, I was surprised how few students, all enrolled in high school business courses, had access to a financial literacy instruction. I experienced the results of this shortcoming firsthand after my parent’s divorce. Lacking a personal finance education, my mother initially struggled with basic budgeting and understanding mortgages and taxes. By expanding financial literacy education in high schools, we can lay the foundation to challenge wealth

The idea of adding a financial literacy course into schools curriculums and requiring students to take it before graduating is a current decision being considered by numerous school districts. Supporters of this idea say that it would have a positive effect while the people who oppose this idea state that financial courses don’t work.

You would think that somewhere between kindergarten and undergrad, there would be at least some semi-regular course curriculum in personal finance. Alas, there isn’t. Your children won 't learn about money in elementary school, middle school, high school, or college.

Specially trained students of Indiana University offer one-on-one financial counseling to other students. These students are known apart of the “Money Smarts Team.” They teach students and help them understand basic information like how to create- and stick to- a budget, managing credit card debt, and how to make better decisions which would result in them borrowing less.

This statement is rather shocking but proves why high school students should be taught financial literacy. Financial literacy is the ability of learning how to manage money. Financial literacy should be taught because, more people have been going bankrupt at a younger age, they have more debt options, and lastly are unable to manage money because they have never been taught. This is not just a problem for an individual, but potentially a huge problem in this country’s future.

In the article “Teaching Personal Finance to College Students: What Matters to Them,” the author, Elven Riley, reveals how he taught a personal finance course by using real-life situations that his college students would soon encounter instead theoretical situations often found in textbooks. His main goal in doing this was to show that in order to get the students to truly understand these financial concepts, you need to relate it to them and their lives. He used the actual experience, grades, and feedback from his courses to support his belief. This article was quite easy to understand and I felt connected to it because I also tend to understand and learn better when I can immediately see the connection the lesson has to my

A problem that the author is that high schoolers are flunking badly because there is a lack of financed literacy. The author also states that it the last great opportunity to acquire financial courses before entering costly, complex and changing world. She also say schools should require personal finance because student will lack in that skill and only 17 states require these courses.

As the impact of financial stress and the importance of strong financial management skills becomes more recognized and considered as an area of possible intervention, there is becoming a more widespread application of financial management public education opportunities as well as courses integrated into various high school and college

There are a couple different reasons. According to Dan Kadlec, a journalist and a strategic adviser to the National Financial Educators Council, “Only one in five teachers feels qualified to lead a personal finance class, according to a University of Wisconsin study. So we don't have enough instructors. Personal finance concepts are not part of standardized tests like the SAT or ACT. As the saying goes in education circles: If it's not tested, it's not taught. Education is run at the state level. So there is no federal authority to mandate personal finance classes, and each state has its own ideas on how to go about it.” (Why We Want, 1)

President Clinton said, “We have tracked down defaulters and made them pay” (17). The partnership between President Clinton, the US Department of Education, different Universities, and college students, can educate other students through different programs. They can teach students how they can budget their student loans into their finances and show them what the penalties are for not doing so. It makes sense for students to budget their finances in the first place, so that they will not fall into a pit of defaulting on their student loans. There are ways that students can budget their finances.

First, if we did have a Personal Finance class, it would help students, and it would prepare them with money issues they would have to deal with on their own. Students can have benefits from taking a class like this. According to a student from John Champe High School in Virginia in the article "Rithmetic and Retirement? Teens learn about 401(k)s," she admits having benefits from taking the class. As you can see Principal Parker, having a class like this will assist them in making better decisions with their own money. It opens their eyes to

As so many young people are in desperate need of personal finance lessons, putting this content within the required high school curriculum would give them all a background they can use when making financial decisions, both right after high school and throughout the rest of their lives. Right now, only a few states have this personal finance curriculum implemented into the required content of their high schools and even fewer have testing to make sure these areas are being taught well (“Survey of the States” 1). They have had beneficial results, although these few locations cannot do enough to educate an entire generation about personal finance before the student loan debt rises even higher and thousands of young adults are unknowingly finding themselves in financial issues. Personal finance education is working in some high school systems, however, there are still improvements that need to be made before every high school student is offered the same opportunity to learn the financial skills that will help them in their future. These improvements include efforts to increase student motivation, educate teachers on how best to teach personal finance, and change the curriculum so that it is more beneficial to these young people.

The current high school financial literacy system is broken to say the least. This is a class that shoulds strive to be a more hands-on environment. The curriculum is one the only strong part of the class. Learning about credit cards/debit cards, balancing checkbooks, savings and checking accounts, basic money management skills are all crucial to know. These provide a great backbone to the class, but more must be brought in.