Poll shows the growing demand for financial literacy in schools

A strong majority of American adults believe that financial education should be a mandatory part of the high school curriculum, according to new national polls from the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEF).

Three -style percent of the respondents say that their state must require a semester or a year -long course aimed at personal finances as a graduation requirement. An identical percentage of those who went to high school says they wish they had to follow such a course when they were students.

The data, collected by Nefe in collaboration with Surveyusa, reflects consistent findings of comparable polls that were carried out three years ago. It is because more state legislators weigh or assume policy to make a nuclear part of the high school graduist requirements from personal financing.

“This newest poll reinforces for a long time Support for financial educationWith four out of five American adults who agree on its importance, “said Billy Hensley, Ph.D., President and CEO of Nefe.” These feelings are proof of the states that have committed themselves to the requirement and implementation of the curricula of financial education, so that today’s students have received many adults while they were at school. “

The poll also revealed a generation gap in access; Only 44% of respondents aged 18-34 said that their school had a personal financial class compared to 77% of the age of 65 and older.

Hensley welcomed the growing number of states that K – 12 Financial Education Mandates has established and called the movement “a step in the direction of fairness and economic empowerment.”

This urge for financial literacy is especially crucial in black communities, where economic inequalities are exacerbated by historical and systemic exclusion of opportunities for building generations. According to a report from Brookings Institution 2023 in 2022 for every $ 100 in wealth In the hands of white householdsBlack households only held $ 15 and emphasized a persistent and growing racial wealth gorge.

Although Afro -Mamans often follow higher education in a desire for upward mobility, they also wear a disproportionate part of the student debt, often without the financial tools to manage this.

According to the report, experts say that early, standardized access to personal financial education in secondary schools, in particular in disadvantaged communities, could be a powerful tool to help these gaps close. For legislators, proponents urge fair implementation, so that students from all backgrounds are equipped with the skills to manage credit, to save effectively and plan financial health in the long term.

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