Should Personal Finance Be Taught in Schools? Yes |
By Siddarth Nagaraj on February 2, 2011
.jpg.aspx?width=75&height=75) In a society increasingly racked by debt, it has become increasingly clear that Americans must address not only the personal consequences of poor financial habits, but the implications that it has had and will continue to have for their children and the nation as a whole. While it has long been acknowledged that the permeation of our culture by omnipresent debt continues to create tremendous problems for the future, those who decry financial misbehavior and seek to promote fiscal responsibility remain embattled. Although measures to provide the public with necessary skills in basic financial literacy are becoming more common at the adult level, there is a jarring lack of any equivalent curriculum within the education system. This has prompted an ongoing debate over whether and how American youth should receive an education in personal finance, raising questions not only about the need for greater financial knowledge and the best way to disseminate it, but also the purpose of education itself.
It is generally agreed that an understanding of personal finance is a crucial component of one’s ability to survive independently, whether it be through conducting everyday business or planning for the long-term future. Ignorance about financial affairs leaves one vulnerable to confusion and charlatans of all sorts. With that in mind, there are a number of reasons why personal finance should be incorporated into school curricula.
Many people gain their first exposure to money management through jobs they fulfill during adolescence. While part-time jobs are rightly promoted as an opportunity for students to gain work experience, there is no corresponding encouragement to use their earnings wisely. In contrast, while relatively few institutions have strenuously pressured students to save habitually, the credit industry has targeted youth, appealing to their contrasting desires to be prepared for looming financial burdens (such as college tuition) and to have accessible capital for other expenses. Many young adults grow up not knowing how best to acquire and pay off credit or what savings measures they should take to secure their future. Consequently, an increasing number of Americans who find themselves in credit card debt become trapped in conflict with their creditors before they can find a secure position in the workforce. Thus, students who have not learnt personal finance become independent adults who do not know how to protect themselves in the marketplace or even address the legal aspects of their financial situation (i.e. filing taxes). Training students in school would make adult education in financial literacy less necessary, producing a new generation of more fiscally prudent citizens
Opponents of teaching personal finance in school argue over which point in a student’s development is the best age to begin addressing issues of fiscal responsibility. Others contend that existing academic subjects within current curricula are already insufficiently addressed, and inclusion of personal finance would weaken studies in general. They posit that teaching fiscal prudence is a parental responsibility, and that attempting to teach it formally to students is not the role of the education system. Yet given the growing level of debt faced by an ever-increasing number of Americans, surely the burden that society would bear because of citizens who never acquired financial knowledge outpaces the burden of ensuring that future generations do not leave school without an understanding of the practical skills they will need to succeed in the workforce and in everyday life.
Given the social ramifications of fiscal irresponsibility, sound financial behavior is both a personal necessity and a civic duty. In order to make prudent decisions, individuals must have a solid understanding of personal finance. With that in consideration, the subject should be incorporated into school curricula. One of the clearest responsibilities of education is to provide students with the knowledge and skills that are necessary for them to fulfill their own responsibilities. If there is any potential academic subject which all individuals can gain maximum utility from, it is surely personal finance. |
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