If I told you the United States is the wealthiest country in the world, I trust you would not be too surprised.
What if I told you data collected biannually by the Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy reveals that only 7% of high-school students can be considered financially literate? What if I also told you that 33 states in our country do not require high-school students to take a basic economics class or a financial literacy class in order to earn their high-school diploma?
You might ask, how can this possibly be, in the wealthiest country in the world?
Well, the dirty little secret is that a financial literacy and proficiency deficit in the United States continues to be a significant societal problem. But it must surely be improving with all the cable TV financial channels and myriad financial information on the internet? Actually, a comparison of Finra surveys from 2009 and 2012 showed a decline in financial literacy over the four-year period. A 2015 study of financial literacy that covered adults in 148 countries found that the U.S. ranked 14th, behind Singapore and the Czech Republic and slightly ahead of Estonia and Bhutan.
What is fascinating is we all desire for our kids to get good grades in high school, so they can attend a good college and get a rewarding and well-paying job, but we fail miserably as a society in providing them with financial education and financial proficiency.
How do we help ensure that the next generation will be better financially educated and more proficient in understanding credit-card debt, college loans, 401(k) retirement plans, global capital markets, investment options, diversification, asset allocation, mortgages and stock options, to name just a few?
Well, at Barron’s we want to spark new thinking on this topic and help put a highly valued and highly educational financial publication in the hands of the next generation of college, university and high-school students. For nearly a century, our readers have ranked as many of the most successful business leaders and investors in the world, so this only seems logical.
Barron’s is pleased to announce Barron’s in Education. This program, funded by Barron’s and sponsors who are also interested in vastly improving financial literacy and proficiency, makes it possible for all students and faculty at participating schools to receive a digital subscription to Barron’s at no cost. We also provide a weekly review that highlights the top events and articles that professors and teachers can address in the classroom. A new email newsletter summarizes the top business and investment stories of the week. We are also making our MarketWatch Virtual Stock Exchange interactive game available, at no cost to the schools and students.
The author is director of financial literacy and education at Dow Jones Media Group.
To learn more about this program and how to partner with Barron’s to improve financial literacy and proficiency for the next generation, contact BarronsEDU@barrons.com.