Financial capability programme to be piloted in schools

Issue: Volume 97, Number 15

Posted: 24 August 2018
Reference #: 1H9kD1

A new programme to help young Kiwis develop their knowledge of debt and money management will be trialled in secondary schools next term.

In a recent survey of school leavers, 82 per cent said they wanted to learn about money in class time. Students surveyed indicated they specifically wanted to learn about money management and borrowing money.

The survey, run by the Commission for Financial Capability (CFFC), has led to the development of Sorted in Schools, a programme designed to increase knowledge of money matters amongst students.

The programme will be trialled in term four by a range of secondary schools and industry experts, with the plan to roll out the first online programme to all Year 9 and 10 students in 2019. The programme will later be expanded to include Year 11–13 students.

Retirement Commissioner Diane Maxwell says research has shown 16- to 24-year-olds are particularly vulnerable in incurring unmanageable levels of debt.

“The aim of Sorted in Schools is to equip these students with financial capability so they avoid the traps of high credit, loans and other forms of financial quicksand, and know how to build their financial wealth through every life stage toward retirement.”

Learning content for the term four pilot was developed in collaboration with CORE Education and teachers, to enable teachers to include the programme in existing learning areas of the curriculum. Content will also be developed for Te Marautanga o Te Aho Matua, and will include digital and interactive resources for teachers and students.

“Between us, we will help prepare today’s young people to make wise financial decisions at each life stage, enabling them to live the life they want and arrive at retirement in good financial shape.”

Teachers and schools interested in the pilot programme can email schools@sorted.org.nz or register their expression of intrest online(external link). The full Sorted in Schools programme will be rolled out gradually between 2018–2020.

Why is teaching financial capability at school important?

New Zealand's aging population means that today’s students are facing a very different future than their grandparents – when these young people reach their sixties and seventies, the ratio of New Zealanders aged 65+ will be 1:4. It is expected there will be only 2.5 workers for every retiree, which means young people today need to reach retirement in good financial shape so they can support themselves.

BY Education Gazette editors
Education Gazette | Tukutuku Kōrero, reporter@edgazette.govt.nz

Posted: 12:04 pm, 24 August 2018

Get new listings like these in your email
Set up email alerts