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Mar 02, 2017

Educator Brian Page Shares His Lesson: Buying an Automobile

Earlier this month, we received an email from educator Brian Page about a lesson he had created on Buying an Automobile. First and foremost, we want to thank Brian for sharing such a great lesson with us. Second, we want to highlight some of the awesome things about his lesson below! If you are interested in using Brian’s materials, click here to access his resources in Google Drive, which are in “View Only” mode. To use them in your classroom, simply go to File and either click “Make a copy” OR “Add to My Drive”.

Brian describes what led him to create this lesson:

“This lesson uses the experiential learning method, which I prefer to use when at all possible. Before diving into the lesson, I need to provide context. I did not write the lesson with the intention of sharing it with others. So there is not a “teacher guide” with standard alignment and teacher specific nomenclature. We are a 1:1 school, so the lesson is designed for students who have access to a computer. Most importantly, much of the commentary I use in the video and some lesson requirements include the integration of behavioral economics. I scaffold such strategies throughout the class, with the emphasis in the first unit of the class.”

Some of the things we want to highlight from Brian’s lesson:
  • Emotions & Purchasing: Brian tell his students, “The desire to own a new car cannot be allowed to overwhelm the practical considerations of your budget.” Well said! It is important that students consider how their emotions may be influencing their judgement when making an important financial decision. 
  • The Salesman’s Pitch: One of the videos Brian uses is “A 30 Year Veteran Salesman Tries to Take Me Down!”. Not only does the video demonstrate what it’s like to talk to a salesman, but it also includes Brian’s own comments and detailed questions.
  • Behavioral Economics: One of the key highlights of this lesson was the Behavioral Economics lens that Brian adds. He asks questions that challenge students to think about why they make certain financial decisions. This is a great way to get students thinking about the true motivations behind their purchasing decisions.

Here’s Brian’s description of how he teaches this lesson over three days: 

  • Day 1 – A simulated experience purchasing a vehicle: The day begins with students shopping for a vehicle. I want their simulated experience to be relevant to them, so I restrict their choices to vehicles only affordable now or in the near future. I follow it up with a video of a salesperson negotiating with a potential buyer for a car. My goal was to create the experience of researching and selecting a car, then negotiating to purchase the car. I used EdPuzzle to create questions and commentary. This is where at times teachers will need to make inferences of the behavior strategies discussed in class. The final short video is a car salesman giving advice to another car salesman. The advice pertains to the previous video and allows for the students to see the world through their eyes so they can better appreciate that the vehicle purchasing process is full of tricks and traps for buyers.
  • Day 2 – Explore resources that can help you make an informed and planned vehicle purchase: You could likely stretch the day 2 requirements into 100 minutes of instruction. The intention is to arm students with the resources they need to make informed buying decisions.
  • Day 3 – Coalesce what you have learned into your own buying guide for future vehicle purchasing decisions: It has been my experience that students greatly appreciate assessment choices. All three assessment choices are designed to nudge students into saving the resources for future vehicle purchasing decisions.
Note: The Auto Financing 101 slides in Brian’s Google folder were created by AWARE.

 

Additional thoughts on this lesson from Brian Page:

In my recent work for Dr. Lusardi’s GFLEC and Digital Promise, I created the micro-credential Social and Emotional Based Learning: Comparison Shopping for Big Ticket Items using [the experiential learning] method. The micro-credential guides teachers through the method step by step process, and provides supporting research. In April I will release a series for Right About Money with lesson suggestions using CASEL Core Competencies as a guide to integrating social and emotional learning into personal finance lessons.
I’m a big believer in integrating behavior strategies into personal finance lessons. Teachers who want to do the same should consider the following resources:

 

– Thinking About Money (Video)
– Scarcity (Book)
– Nudge (Book)
– The Marshmallow Experiment (Book)
– Sidetracked (Book)
– CASEL Core Competencies (Website Page)
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About the Author

Sonia Dalal

Sonia has always been passionate about instruction and improving students' learning experiences. She's come a long way since her days as a first grader, when she would "teach" music and read to her very attentive stuffed animals after school. Since then, she has taught students as a K-12 tutor, worked in several EdTech startups in the Bay Area, and completed her Ed.M in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is passionate about bringing the high quality personal finance content and instruction she wished she'd received in school to the next generation of students and educators. When she isn't crafting lesson guides or working with teachers, Sonia loves to spend her time singing, being outdoors, and adventuring with family and friends!

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