Millions of Americans struggle every day with their money, living paycheck to paycheck and relying on credit cards for necessities, only to wind up deep in debt and short on hope. Beyond that, many Americans are finding that they can’t buy homes, invest for retirement, or save for their child’s college fund because of their own student loan debt, massive car payments, and general lack of financial planning. But it doesn’t have to be that way; a lot of the money problems that people are facing today could have been avoided if financial education was taught earlier in school. Financial education should be a mandatory component of the school program because it equips people with the knowledge and skills needed to manage money effectively. When taught at an early age, financial education prepares students for adulthood, could open up several career options, and will be beneficial to the economy as a whole.
The earlier financial preparation is instilled, the better because financial education gives students a head start in life. By middle school and high school, some students may already have jobs, and with them, the opportunities to establish financially-responsible behaviors that will build the foundation for the rest of their lives. Think about the jump start your child could get in life if, when they graduated high school, they were already in the habit of budgeting, saving regularly and spending wisely. Students who learn personal finance principles early have the most time to apply what they know, getting the most out of their knowledge. Even better, many personal finance students apply what they learn right away—while they’re still in high school. For example, according to a survey conducted by Ramsey Research in 2016, nearly two out of three high school students who had taken a personal finance course reported they were already earning an average of $3, 000 a year. A high majority of the same group said they were in the habit of creating monthly budgets for their money and 20% already owned a car they paid for themselves. These studies prove that as many schools as possible should be teaching financial literacy because that knowledge lays a foundation for students to build strong money habits early on, therefore avoiding many of the mistakes that lead to lifelong money struggles.
Millions of Americans struggle every day with their
money
, living paycheck to paycheck and relying on credit cards for necessities,
only
to wind up deep in debt and short on hope. Beyond that,
many
Americans are finding that they can’t
buy
homes, invest for retirement, or save for their child’s college fund
because
of their
own
student
loan debt, massive car payments, and general lack of
financial
planning.
But
it doesn’t
have to
be that way;
a lot of
the
money
problems that
people
are facing
today
could have
been avoided
if
financial
education
was taught
earlier in
school
.
Financial
education
should be a mandatory component of the
school
program
because
it equips
people
with the knowledge and
skills
needed to manage
money
effectively
. When taught at an early age,
financial
education
prepares
students
for adulthood, could open up several career options, and will be beneficial to the economy as a whole.
The earlier
financial
preparation
is instilled
, the better
because
financial
education
gives
students
a head
start
in life. By middle
school
and
high
school
,
some
students
may
already
have jobs, and with them, the opportunities to establish
financially
-responsible behaviors that will build the foundation for the rest of their
lives
.
Think
about the jump
start
your child could
get
in life if, when they
graduated
high
school
, they were
already
in the habit of budgeting, saving
regularly
and spending
wisely
.
Students
who learn personal finance principles early have the most time to apply what they know, getting the most out of their knowledge. Even better,
many
personal finance
students
apply what they learn right away—while they’re
still
in
high
school
.
For example
, according to a survey conducted by Ramsey Research in 2016,
nearly
two out of three
high
school
students
who had taken a personal finance course reported they were
already
earning an average of $3, 000 a year. A
high
majority of the same group said they were in the habit of creating monthly budgets for their
money
and 20%
already
owned
a car they paid for themselves. These studies prove that as
many
schools
as possible should be teaching
financial
literacy
because
that knowledge lays a foundation for
students
to build strong
money
habits early on,
therefore
avoiding
many
of the mistakes that lead to lifelong
money
struggles.