CNBC highlights the importance of training teachers to ensure success of personal finance education. Here are some of the challenges:

Cox said that he does face some challenges with instructing teachers on financial literacy. Knowledge of personal finance is a very important life skill, but it is hard to get school systems to see it as essential as subjects such as reading and math. Teachers struggle with the knowledge of financial concepts themselves. Financial literacy isn’t the most natural subject for teachers to teach, so getting the school to allow time for the training is another issue, Cox said.

60% of former pro basketball players run into financial difficulties soon after retirement (Ozy).  What factor is predictive of future money problems?

“In a study of National Basketball Association players drafted from 1990 to 1996, Henry found that, when controlling for things like a player’s shooting percentage, education, age and position, every 3-pointer a player heaved up per 36 minutes of court time increased his odds of going bankrupt by a factor of three.”

NY teacher summarizes the importance of financial education for lower income students (Bensonhurst Bean)

“Students are born into their parents’ economic reality and unfortunately, for far too many city children this often means not seeing their parents because they work multiple jobs, sometimes coming to school hungry, being under-dressed for the weather, or arriving to school without basic school supplies. Economic education and financial literacy instruction empowers students to envision and prepare for a better economic future for themselves and hopefully, also teaches them the importance of being philanthropic.”

Gender roles remain strong among couples when it comes to money matters.  When it comes to paying bills (NerdWallet):

“Slightly more than one-third of men and women surveyed split household bills. But like with “first dates,” traditional gender roles remain strong: 35.9% of men surveyed pay 100% of household bills compared to 14.3% of women; 21.8% of women surveyed said they pay none of the household bills, compared to 3% of men.’

Florida becomes first state in nation to adopt national financial literacy standards (Daytona Beach News-Journal):

“Florida became the first state in the country to follow the standards starting this year and all public school students, including those in Flagler and Volusia counties, must pass the class to graduate.”

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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