U.S. students’ understanding of personal finance might be average when compared with their peers overseas, as results from an international test showed last week, but some states and nonprofits are aiming to strengthen the teaching of financial in American schools.
Last month, the state board of education in Florida adopted a financial-literacy strand to its social studies standards. The state used the Council for Economic Education’s K-12 National Standards for Financial Literacy—the first state in the country to do so. The council’s standards were developed by a team of economists, Federal Reserve education specialists, and financial education researchers, and then reviewed by a committee of Florida teachers and education experts and modified to meet state requirements.
The standards focus on six areas related to personal finance: earning income, buying goods and services, using credit, saving, financial investing, and protecting and insuring. Nan Morrison, the president and CEO of the Council for Economic Education, said the organization is working with other states to adopt the standards.
