High school seniors takes deep breaths and parade onto the stage. The beginning of a new chapter awaits as they make the journey from one point of the stage to the end. They reflect on what they have been taught in those many years of high school. The most terrifying fact while graduating high school is the next step: making it on their own. Because they have taken part in the appropriate classes, the students are certain that they have gained the correct knowledge to begin making their mark on the world. In high school, it is crucial to achieve the appropriate classes in order to feel ready to take on the world ahead as an adult. However, many students lack proper education. One key example is financial literacy. Financial literacy is the …show more content…
One way our school could accomplish the goal of financial literacy education is creating a set class for high school students towards the end of their high school career. Offering classes in a curriculum that is set helps kids become better prepared for the real world. They receive a better understanding of what it is like having a great deal of responsibility, without the overwhelming of stress that comes with it since the class would be set in a classroom. According to the article written by Laura Langemo from Fox6 entitled “MPS Eighth-Graders Get a Lesson in Financial Literacy”, the Milwaukee Public School District Superintendent Gregory Thornton states, “We need [students] to be ready financially. We need them to be ready to step into the world and be able to actually navigate and manage money.” Students should feel confident after graduating that they will be capable of receiving such a great sense of responsibility. Teaching students about financial literacy at an older age throughout high school will allow them to be ready for their lives ahead. According to this article, many of the students were surprised with how bills amass in such a rapid pace. Similarly, the article from the Sandpiper by Edie Ellison includes information about being able to offer high school students classes in …show more content…
Many parents feel that their kids are not ready to be faced with such a stressful responsibility, so why should they have to experience this before they have to? Parents do not want their kids to be taught these courses too soon. The article entitled “Is It a Mistake to Try to Teach Financial Literacy in High School?” by Hank Coleman from Daily Finance states, “Classes in budgeting, credit cards, compound interest and other basic personal finance skills can help prepare our children for adulthood. The problem stems from overzealous mandates. Our children -- and far too often, our teachers -- [are not] in a position to handle more than a cursory examination of financial topics.” This article not only covers the idea that students may not be ready for this serious topic, but teachers may not be prepared to teach these topics for a younger audience. Although these are valid points, there is never an appropriate time to start incorporating financial education without some stress. Students need to be to be able to welcome financial responsibility after graduating. It is unattainable, however, to set a specific point in a student’s life where learning this topic will not cause some amount of stress. People who believe that teaching these topics at a younger age will cause unnecessary
Once high school ends, most students progress to college after a year or two from graduation. Due to all of the expenses for textbooks and etc., the student might realize that they don’t comprehend what to conserve or spend their money on to get through their years of college which will leave them clueless on what to do next. With situations like this that might occur, all high school students should take a financial literacy class as part of the mandatory course in order to get a diploma. With a numerous amount of students not having enough knowledge about how to manage their money carefully, presumably they’ll have trouble living their life as an adult. Taking a financial literacy class would help students stay out of debt, they’ll be prepared for their future, and they would recognize the discrepancies between wants and needs.
I think it is important for students to learn about this topic because when students are new on campus, they tend to loose more money due to poor choices. College students need to learn how to use their money wisely since they have to pay for tuition, books, clothes and
Personal Financial Advisors work behind the scenes with every type of person. They are the people who know how money works, and can tell you the best way to spend yours. They make investments on stocks or bonds, they plan for your retirement or children's college education. Financial advisors are aware of different opportunities and investment plans and they have the means to put your money where it can earn the largest return. A vast majority of people invest money, and more often than not there is a financial advisor by their side. This means that I could find a job as a financial advisor anywhere in the United States and in most other places around the world as well. Of course, it fits to reason that the people directing the world's money
Literature review has been conducted on the importance of financial literacy, and the above notions were a significant part of almost most findings.
MacEwan points out there are three areas which should be addressed if we want to get a handle on our financial crisis. High school seniors shoul...
Students do not have the education needed to use credit cards responsibly. Nellie Mae (August 2007) states that 93% percent of students would have liked more information on financial management topics before they started school and want financial management education made available to them now. This is proof that students crave the education before getting into debt. Allowing credit companies to market their product on campus is too much of a temptation ...
As college students now, we know how important it is to know about how to avoid debts because many of us are or will rely on student loans to get through our higher education. Champlain College’s Center for Financial Literacy used national data to grade each state in the United States on how much effort is put into providing financial literacy for their high school students. Based on the information gathered in 2015 only 5 states obtained a letter A grade on their financial literary education; these states are Utah, Missouri, Tennessee, Alabama, and Virginia. These states require their students to take between half a year to a whole year of a either general financial literacy or personal finance. It is unclear how the student achievement is measured after taking these courses, but the resources to learn about what to expect are provided and are required to be able to graduate from high school, which cannot be said about all other 45 states in our country. 11 of the states were given a letter F grade, including our beloved California. These states do not offer finance classes alone or embedded into other courses. Although the achievement of students who take these courses is not exactly measured after graduating it is still significant information for them to carry with them into their adulthood. Many high school graduates will enroll in a community college or a 4-year university and will be targeted by credit card companies because they lack the knowledge on how important credit is and how to avoid debts. This is not only a worry shared by the graduating students but by the parents as well. MasterCard gave a survey to its cardholder members and 64 percent of these adults said they were worried that their
Most kids that have graduated high school have never been educated on the subject of personal finance, so they don’t know things like how to pay bills, or even how to do something as simple as applying for a job. According to a family friend of mine, Ron Hart; who happens to also be an award-wining author and TV/radio commentator, believes that students in high school don’t learn anything about how to get a job or get prepared financially. He states that, “ Students should prepare for a job. Maybe, instead of taking a fifth field trip to the Trail of Tears site, do one to learn about real jobs in an area they might want.” Hart believes that most basic high schools aren’t teaching students how to become financially stable for their future, which can cause major issues. He claims that “few schools teach about the value of hard work, ingenuity, gumption and entrepreneurship. Those lessons are as rare as Donald Trump bumper stickers in the faculty parking lot.” Hart also goes on to talk about how high school does not prepare you for life the same way college will. There are so many more lessons to learn there that people are missing out on. College is very important due to the fact that it will teach students more skills about finance and job seeking that most high schools don’t. In college, kids will learn how to save and budget their money, pay for their own expenses, and prioritize their needs verses their wants. Learning financial responsibility is also something that kids will carry with them throughout their jobs and their life. Having more freedom to understand the concepts of person finance will allow students to make mature decisions while easing their way into real world
Making improvements on our financial literacy results in a wave of impacts on our economy and the financial health in our society because of responisble behiavior with our finances. These modifications to our behavior are neccesary because it let's us address primary cultural problems, for example over-credits on your purchases, mortgages possibly resulting in debt, dealing with expectations on inflation and also planning on your retirement.
Being successful at budgeting our personal finances is not strength within our household, and I often find myself nervous thinking about our cash flow. I don’t recall having conversations with my parents concerning finances; I only remember learning to balance a checkbook while in high school. Considering that most Americans will have the need to create a budget and manage their finances at one point of their adult life, I feel that a series of personal finance classes should be a part of a high school education. In these tough economic times, I’ve learned that having a handle on our personal finances is not a luxury – it’s a requirement. Therefore, making money while effectively managing and tracking how you spend it is closely related to stress levels and living a comfortable life.
One might say there is a strong argument for the requirement of financial literacy for students in America. Americans continue to have increased balances on their credit cards as well as show a continued increase in bankruptcy filings according to statistics. Even the “baby boomer” generation is no longer exempt from financial hardships, as their generation has recently taken the title of “Fastest Growing Bankruptcy Demographic” from the 25 – 34 year olds (Linfield, 2011). Would it not make sense to say that Americans need to learn how to budget and borrow more wisely? Would not the best place to start be in schools? Well, the answer to that question is not a simple one.
The lack of knowledge plays a big part in the debt young people are getting themselves into. Credit cards are often offered to young adults as soon as they get out of high school. Many take advantage of having a credit card without even thinking about the responsibilities that come with it, instead they think about the things they will be able to buy. In “Generation Debt” the author Tamara Draut says that young people are getting into debt younger than ever before. Two of the reasons that are more costly on young students that hit hard on the budget are car repairs, and travel for students who have families and friends in other states (231). From my experience I know first-hand what it was like to be offered credit cards right out of high school, and I didn’t hesitate to get any of them. I st...
...ial literacy, encouraging independent thinking, and reinforcing good habits. Building financial literacy in children while they are young gives them a chance to use and begin to understand money for a longer period of time. Therefore, giving them a better understanding of it when they are older and, in a way, giving them a head start for being financially responsible as adults. Encouraging independent thinking will give adolescents a chance to think for themselves even if it is small decisions at first. Because they will most likely value their money and not want to give it away for just anything, their peers will have less of an influence on their decisions. You, as a parent, can reinforce good habits like self-discipline, setting short and long term goals, and learning and practicing good work ethic. Nagging all the time has got to stop. Set up an allowance system.
The second lesson concentrates on the importance of financial literacy. There is one rule to follow so as to understand financial literacy – “Know the difference between an asset and a liability, and buy more assets.” In order to do this, you need to be able to understand and comprehend numbers instead of jus...
Many students in grade school don’t obtain money very often because they do not have a steady income, so they are prone to spend the money they get. For example, if a student gets money for a holiday, the first thing that comes to mind is to spend it on something they want because they are not used to having money. They don’t know the next time they will get more money so they don’t see the importance of saving. Since there would be a constant income a student will see the effect of saving because their amount of money would constantly be increasing which will motivate them to keep saving. If students learn how to save while they are younger they will be more successful in life, and they will also have that money to use when they graduate.