A new report by experts with the University of Tennessee (UT) Department of Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) offers suggestions on how Tennessee school systems and educators can enhance the state's financial education requirement for high school students.
As part of legislation enacted 15 years ago, Tennessee requires public high school students to complete a half semester credit of personal financial education prior to graduation.
The new study finds that Tennessee's high school teachers recognize and believe in the efficacy of financial education for their students. As one educator participating in the study observed, "I don't give homework. I give life work."
That said, the research team identified a number of ways to strengthen the required course.
First and foremost, the financial education course should be a full credit, rather than the current half credit, according to study leaders. The goal of the course is to help young people master a broad range of financial concepts and practical skills so they can make informed decisions about everything from budgeting to managing credit to building wealth. Achieving such proficiencies requires adequate time and attention in the curriculum.
As part of the study, which was supported by grants from the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Investor Education Foundation, researchers with UT FCS worked with Tennessee educators who soon will teach, currently teach, or have taught personal finance classes. The research team included UT Extension consumer economic specialists Ann Berry, assistant head and professor of FCS, and Christopher Sneed, associate professor of FCS, as well as Karen Franck, FCS associate professor and Extension evaluation specialist. UT Extension is one of four units of the UT Institute of Agriculture.
In Tennessee, educators cover a range of topics from credit and debt to financial responsibility and decision making and more. Berry states, "From Mountain City to Memphis in high school classrooms across our state, personal finance educators are making a difference covering these critical personal finance topics. They help prepare students for life in the real world."
In addition to increasing the amount of instructional time devoted to personal finance in the high school curriculum, the report recommends:
- Including teachers in the process of revising the curriculum standards for financial education and getting additional teacher input through surveys and/or listening sessions when updating the standards.
- Developing, maintaining, and disseminating curated lists of personal finance lesson plans and websites.
- Encouraging teachers to share successful curriculum materials and resources with other teachers.
"We are thrilled to have worked with the researchers at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture—in collaboration with the FINRA Investor Education Foundation—and provide research funding for this important project," said Joshua Caraballo, Psy.D, managing director of research at NEFE. "This is a great example of work that aligns with NEFE's research priorities, due to its focus on the enhancement of knowledge and behavior influencers with robust and actionable research. This investigation of considerations that enhance or detract from high school teachers' ability to successfully implement personal finance education demonstrates that there are universal lessons to extract and emulate. While it is focused on Tennessee, this work will surely benefit high school teachers, and their students, who are engaged in financial education efforts across the nation."
FINRA Foundation President Gerri Walsh added, "There is extensive research detailing the long-term benefits of rigorous high school financial education in terms of credit scores, decision-making related to student loans, and overall financial well-being. The UT FCS study identifies pathways for making financial education even more effective. It leverages the collective wisdom of hundreds of teachers who work every day to ensure their students graduate well-prepared to make careful financial decisions in a complex world. The lessons from this study are important not just for Tennessee, but for every state."
One additional recommendation from the report addresses the optimal time for high school students to take the required financial education course. At present, students may complete the half-credit course any time during their high school years. However, the researchers recommend that a full-year course might best serve students during their junior year. "By this point, students are more likely to have some exposure to the workplace and experience with financial decision-making," says report co-author Sneed.
The full report, Listening to Learn: Assessing the needs of personal finance high school teachers, is available online at the UT Family and Consumer Sciences website under the " Money " tab.
UT Extension is currently one of the providers approved by the Tennessee Department of Education to deliver the 14 hours of continuing education that high school teachers must complete before they are qualified to teach personal finance. Information about that training is available at the same website.
The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture is composed of the Herbert College of Agriculture, UT College of Veterinary Medicine, UT AgResearch and UT Extension. Through its land-grant mission of teaching, research and outreach, the Institute touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. to Tennesseans and beyond. Learn more at utia.tennessee.edu .
