Primary students need to learn the value of money

Dr Carly Sawatzki, a member of Monash University’s education faculty, works with teacher associations and schools to help teachers develop financial literacy lessons that reflect that Australians face decisions about money, and feelings that influence those decisions, every day. She says that students need to learn about financial issues, beyond accounting for their pocket money to make sense of and participate in the world they live in; her research clearly showed that today’s students typically realise that money is a limited resource and are motivated to learn to use it ethically across a wide variety of functions.

“From understanding how much money they need for a canteen lunch at primary school to weighing economic policies as they prepare to vote once they leave secondary school, young Australians are confronted with issues based on financial data and information every day,” she said. “They need to apply a range of knowledge and skills to assess and respond to those issues.”

The 2015 Organisation for Cooperation and Development’s Programme for International Student Assessment report found that among 15-year-olds.

• about half (49%) receive pocket money for doing chores at home, while more than half (52%) earn money from part-time or casual work – suggesting that lessons that encourage entrepreneurship while exploring formal and informal employment, and domestic and volunteer work, would be useful and engaging
• most (79%) have bank accounts – suggesting it would be helpful to learn to navigate digital financial services and keep track of money that is essentially invisible
• Australian students are influenced by the need to “fit in” and by advertising, so should be prepared to think critically about the information and clever marketing tactics they are exposed to.

Dr Sawatzki said parents may not be aware that new technologies – including video and computer games – offer ways to develop financial awareness and skills.

“Children can learn basic economics through online strategy games like Minecraft,” she said. “Expanding this learning to the real world through buying and selling second hand goods together on eBay or Gumtree can show young people the value of re-using resources while teaching them how markets determine price. It’s also useful for talking about staying safe online, including paying securely.”