金融專家戴夫·拉姆齊在26歲時申請過破產(chǎn),如今他是全美超過700萬高中生的個人理財代言人。這要部分歸功于現(xiàn)在美國有26個州要求高中生必須完成財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)課程才能畢業(yè)。
由于學(xué)校已經(jīng)面臨教師人手不足的問題,因此教授個人理財課程的責(zé)任往往落在了那些本身就財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)不高的歷史老師或體育老師身上,結(jié)果他們只能播放一學(xué)期的專家視頻,例如拉姆齊的視頻。
雖然教師相關(guān)專業(yè)知識的匱乏是導(dǎo)致教學(xué)效果參差不齊的部分原因,但金融專家表示,根本原因是全國范圍內(nèi)的財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)缺失。
賓夕法尼亞大學(xué)(University of Pennsylvania)沃頓商學(xué)院(Wharton School)的金融學(xué)教授邁克爾·羅伯茨表示,在美國,允許18歲的年輕人申請10萬美元的大學(xué)貸款,而他們自己或他們的父母卻沒有足夠的理財知識來了解這筆貸款對其人生造成的長期影響,這對他們來說是一種“傷害”。
羅伯茨對《財富》雜志表示:“人們早就已經(jīng)認(rèn)識到,一個人要想成為一位積極、成功和幸福的公民,理財教育至關(guān)重要。想想理財對你我生活的重要性,這真的不可或缺?!?/p>
根據(jù)美國財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)卓越中心(Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center)與美國教師保險和年金協(xié)會(TIAA)的數(shù)據(jù),大多數(shù)成年人在做出財務(wù)決策時財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)水平較低,其中Z世代的財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)最差。在1990年代末和2000年代初出生的這一代人只能回答37%的借貸、投資和儲蓄相關(guān)問題。考慮到七分之一的Z世代信用卡用戶已經(jīng)透支了額度,而且僅在美國,學(xué)生貸款債務(wù)就超過2萬億美元,這一數(shù)據(jù)令人震驚。
總體而言,根據(jù)WalletHub的數(shù)據(jù),四分之一的Z世代對自己的理財知識和技能沒有信心,超過三分之一的人表示他們的父母在理財方面并沒有為他們樹立良好的榜樣。
然而,并非所有人都認(rèn)為專門的個人理財課程是在有效利用學(xué)生的時間。
有一項廣為流傳的研究表明:“幾乎沒有證據(jù)證明旨在改善財務(wù)決策的教育是成功的。”相反,這項研究建議加強(qiáng)數(shù)學(xué)教育,可以在以后改善學(xué)生的市場參與、投資收入和信用管理。另一項研究指出,“旨在提高財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)的干預(yù)措施只能解釋0.1%的金融行為差異,在低收入樣本中效果更弱”,而且由于學(xué)生可能很快忘記所學(xué)內(nèi)容,必修課程的效果微不足道。
然而,這兩項都是十多年前的研究,當(dāng)時只有大約五個州要求提供財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育。現(xiàn)在,又有21個州通過了要求提供財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育的法律。
美國國家財務(wù)教育基金會(National Endowment for Financial Education)總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官比利·亨斯利解釋稱,造成分歧的部分原因是歷史上缺乏數(shù)據(jù)和少數(shù)研究的主導(dǎo)地位。他補(bǔ)充說,現(xiàn)在有壓倒性的證據(jù)證明財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育是有效的——前提是方法得當(dāng)。
他指出,國家財務(wù)教育基金會的研究部分顯示,參加本州規(guī)定的理財教育課程的學(xué)生有信用卡欠款的概率降低了21%,私人貸款平均減少了1,300美元,獲得經(jīng)濟(jì)援助的可能性提高了3.5%。
如何教授個人理財課程
隨著越來越多的州要求開設(shè)個人理財課程,美國各地的學(xué)區(qū)不得不爭相尋找合格的教師。然而,在許多州,教育工作者在教授個人理財課程之前,并不需要證明自己在該領(lǐng)域的專業(yè)水平。
今年夏天,加利福尼亞州成為最近一個將財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)要求納入學(xué)校課程的州。社會科學(xué)、商業(yè)、數(shù)學(xué)和家政學(xué)的教師被特別授權(quán)教授這門課程,但新出臺的法律也授權(quán)其他學(xué)科的教育工作者提供個人理財課程。
羅伯茨表示,他對正在教授個人理財課程的老師感到“非常擔(dān)心”。雖然教授某些知識或許并不難,比如什么是支票賬戶等,但學(xué)生需要精通金融知識才能真正提高財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)。例如,年輕人應(yīng)該能夠辨別買房和租房哪個選擇更好,或者選擇固定利率還是浮動利率的抵押貸款。
羅伯茨表示:“你必須教會老師。一切都必須從那里開始,最好的方法是讓他們自己參加課程。有多少教師實際上接受過個人理財方面的正式培訓(xùn)?我想不會有太多?!?/p>
擁有超過240萬TikTok粉絲的拉姆齊認(rèn)同學(xué)校開展財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育“至關(guān)重要”,但他表示個人理財有20%依靠學(xué)到的知識,有80%取決于行為。他的個人理財課程已被推廣至美國45%以上的高中。
拉姆齊對《財富》雜志表示:“太多的學(xué)生在成年后背負(fù)債務(wù),導(dǎo)致壓力和焦慮,這不值得。你越早學(xué)習(xí)如何理財,就能越快開始積累財富,并影響你的家族的命運(yùn)。”
亨斯利表示,由于缺乏國家戰(zhàn)略,個人往往會向社交媒體和網(wǎng)紅尋求理財建議。
然而,一項調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),27%的社交媒體用戶曾被虛假或誤導(dǎo)性的理財信息所欺騙,年輕人更容易上當(dāng)。TikTok上只有十分之一的理財網(wǎng)紅會如實公布他們的背景信息。
亨斯利表示:“理財教育不是一刀切的,你不能盲目相信你在網(wǎng)上或其他媒體上看到或聽到的一切,而且世界上根本沒有快速積累財富或獲得財務(wù)安全的萬無一失的方法。此外,一些網(wǎng)紅的知名度越高,就越有可能會收到某些品牌的付款,這可能會影響他們所講述的內(nèi)容?!?/p>
從辯論中找到折中立場
雖然亨斯利不認(rèn)為教育提供者應(yīng)該受到指責(zé),但他表示,美國的經(jīng)濟(jì)體系崩潰,導(dǎo)致某些低收入群體遭到系統(tǒng)性的虐待。
同樣,金融普及研究所(Financial Access Institute)常務(wù)董事蒂莫西·奧格登在一篇專欄文章中寫道,美國人陷入了財務(wù)困境,因為“高等教育、健康保險、兒童保育和租金等成本的上漲速度,都遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過了工資的增長速度”。
然而,在關(guān)于財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育要求的辯論中,奧格登和亨斯利卻站在了對立面。奧格登認(rèn)為,增加預(yù)算制定或利率等方面的知識不一定會改變行為;而亨斯利則認(rèn)為,財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)可以真正產(chǎn)生積極的影響。
亨斯利表示,與其花時間選擇立場,不如將精力用于改善金融體系,造福所有人。
亨斯利表示:“每個人至少在生活中的某個時刻會希望自己掌握了更多理財知識?!保ㄘ敻恢形木W(wǎng))
譯者:劉進(jìn)龍
審校:汪皓
金融專家戴夫·拉姆齊在26歲時申請過破產(chǎn),如今他是全美超過700萬高中生的個人理財代言人。這要部分歸功于現(xiàn)在美國有26個州要求高中生必須完成財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)課程才能畢業(yè)。
由于學(xué)校已經(jīng)面臨教師人手不足的問題,因此教授個人理財課程的責(zé)任往往落在了那些本身就財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)不高的歷史老師或體育老師身上,結(jié)果他們只能播放一學(xué)期的專家視頻,例如拉姆齊的視頻。
雖然教師相關(guān)專業(yè)知識的匱乏是導(dǎo)致教學(xué)效果參差不齊的部分原因,但金融專家表示,根本原因是全國范圍內(nèi)的財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)缺失。
賓夕法尼亞大學(xué)(University of Pennsylvania)沃頓商學(xué)院(Wharton School)的金融學(xué)教授邁克爾·羅伯茨表示,在美國,允許18歲的年輕人申請10萬美元的大學(xué)貸款,而他們自己或他們的父母卻沒有足夠的理財知識來了解這筆貸款對其人生造成的長期影響,這對他們來說是一種“傷害”。
羅伯茨對《財富》雜志表示:“人們早就已經(jīng)認(rèn)識到,一個人要想成為一位積極、成功和幸福的公民,理財教育至關(guān)重要。想想理財對你我生活的重要性,這真的不可或缺?!?/p>
根據(jù)美國財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)卓越中心(Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center)與美國教師保險和年金協(xié)會(TIAA)的數(shù)據(jù),大多數(shù)成年人在做出財務(wù)決策時財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)水平較低,其中Z世代的財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)最差。在1990年代末和2000年代初出生的這一代人只能回答37%的借貸、投資和儲蓄相關(guān)問題。考慮到七分之一的Z世代信用卡用戶已經(jīng)透支了額度,而且僅在美國,學(xué)生貸款債務(wù)就超過2萬億美元,這一數(shù)據(jù)令人震驚。
總體而言,根據(jù)WalletHub的數(shù)據(jù),四分之一的Z世代對自己的理財知識和技能沒有信心,超過三分之一的人表示他們的父母在理財方面并沒有為他們樹立良好的榜樣。
然而,并非所有人都認(rèn)為專門的個人理財課程是在有效利用學(xué)生的時間。
有一項廣為流傳的研究表明:“幾乎沒有證據(jù)證明旨在改善財務(wù)決策的教育是成功的。”相反,這項研究建議加強(qiáng)數(shù)學(xué)教育,可以在以后改善學(xué)生的市場參與、投資收入和信用管理。另一項研究指出,“旨在提高財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)的干預(yù)措施只能解釋0.1%的金融行為差異,在低收入樣本中效果更弱”,而且由于學(xué)生可能很快忘記所學(xué)內(nèi)容,必修課程的效果微不足道。
然而,這兩項都是十多年前的研究,當(dāng)時只有大約五個州要求提供財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育?,F(xiàn)在,又有21個州通過了要求提供財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育的法律。
美國國家財務(wù)教育基金會(National Endowment for Financial Education)總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官比利·亨斯利解釋稱,造成分歧的部分原因是歷史上缺乏數(shù)據(jù)和少數(shù)研究的主導(dǎo)地位。他補(bǔ)充說,現(xiàn)在有壓倒性的證據(jù)證明財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育是有效的——前提是方法得當(dāng)。
他指出,國家財務(wù)教育基金會的研究部分顯示,參加本州規(guī)定的理財教育課程的學(xué)生有信用卡欠款的概率降低了21%,私人貸款平均減少了1,300美元,獲得經(jīng)濟(jì)援助的可能性提高了3.5%。
如何教授個人理財課程
隨著越來越多的州要求開設(shè)個人理財課程,美國各地的學(xué)區(qū)不得不爭相尋找合格的教師。然而,在許多州,教育工作者在教授個人理財課程之前,并不需要證明自己在該領(lǐng)域的專業(yè)水平。
今年夏天,加利福尼亞州成為最近一個將財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)要求納入學(xué)校課程的州。社會科學(xué)、商業(yè)、數(shù)學(xué)和家政學(xué)的教師被特別授權(quán)教授這門課程,但新出臺的法律也授權(quán)其他學(xué)科的教育工作者提供個人理財課程。
羅伯茨表示,他對正在教授個人理財課程的老師感到“非常擔(dān)心”。雖然教授某些知識或許并不難,比如什么是支票賬戶等,但學(xué)生需要精通金融知識才能真正提高財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)。例如,年輕人應(yīng)該能夠辨別買房和租房哪個選擇更好,或者選擇固定利率還是浮動利率的抵押貸款。
羅伯茨表示:“你必須教會老師。一切都必須從那里開始,最好的方法是讓他們自己參加課程。有多少教師實際上接受過個人理財方面的正式培訓(xùn)?我想不會有太多?!?/p>
擁有超過240萬TikTok粉絲的拉姆齊認(rèn)同學(xué)校開展財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育“至關(guān)重要”,但他表示個人理財有20%依靠學(xué)到的知識,有80%取決于行為。他的個人理財課程已被推廣至美國45%以上的高中。
拉姆齊對《財富》雜志表示:“太多的學(xué)生在成年后背負(fù)債務(wù),導(dǎo)致壓力和焦慮,這不值得。你越早學(xué)習(xí)如何理財,就能越快開始積累財富,并影響你的家族的命運(yùn)?!?/p>
亨斯利表示,由于缺乏國家戰(zhàn)略,個人往往會向社交媒體和網(wǎng)紅尋求理財建議。
然而,一項調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),27%的社交媒體用戶曾被虛假或誤導(dǎo)性的理財信息所欺騙,年輕人更容易上當(dāng)。TikTok上只有十分之一的理財網(wǎng)紅會如實公布他們的背景信息。
亨斯利表示:“理財教育不是一刀切的,你不能盲目相信你在網(wǎng)上或其他媒體上看到或聽到的一切,而且世界上根本沒有快速積累財富或獲得財務(wù)安全的萬無一失的方法。此外,一些網(wǎng)紅的知名度越高,就越有可能會收到某些品牌的付款,這可能會影響他們所講述的內(nèi)容?!?/p>
從辯論中找到折中立場
雖然亨斯利不認(rèn)為教育提供者應(yīng)該受到指責(zé),但他表示,美國的經(jīng)濟(jì)體系崩潰,導(dǎo)致某些低收入群體遭到系統(tǒng)性的虐待。
同樣,金融普及研究所(Financial Access Institute)常務(wù)董事蒂莫西·奧格登在一篇專欄文章中寫道,美國人陷入了財務(wù)困境,因為“高等教育、健康保險、兒童保育和租金等成本的上漲速度,都遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過了工資的增長速度”。
然而,在關(guān)于財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)教育要求的辯論中,奧格登和亨斯利卻站在了對立面。奧格登認(rèn)為,增加預(yù)算制定或利率等方面的知識不一定會改變行為;而亨斯利則認(rèn)為,財經(jīng)素養(yǎng)可以真正產(chǎn)生積極的影響。
亨斯利表示,與其花時間選擇立場,不如將精力用于改善金融體系,造福所有人。
亨斯利表示:“每個人至少在生活中的某個時刻會希望自己掌握了更多理財知識?!保ㄘ敻恢形木W(wǎng))
譯者:劉進(jìn)龍
審校:汪皓
Finance guru Dave Ramsey—who filed for bankruptcy at age 26—is the face of personal finance to over seven million students in high schools across the country. That’s due, in part, to the 26 states that now require financial-literacy coursework to graduate high school.
With schools already struggling to fill teacher vacancies, the responsibility to teach personal finance often falls to not-so-financially literate history teachers, or P.E. instructors, who end up showing a semester’s worth of videos from experts like Ramsey.
While a lack of faculty expertise is part of the uneven process, financial experts say a lack of financial literacy countrywide is to blame.
The country is doing a “disservice” to 18-year-olds by allowing them to sign up for $100,000 in college loans—without them or their parents having the financial proficiency to know the life-long impact, said Michael Roberts, professor of finance at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.
“It’s long been recognized that financial education is paramount to being an engaged and hopefully prosperous and happy citizen,” Roberts told Fortune. “If you think about the importance of finance for your life, for my life, for our lives, it’s really unavoidable.”
Most adults are making financial decisions with a poor level of financial literacy, according to the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center and TIAA, with Gen Z having the poorest literacy. Those born between the late 1990s and early 2000s were only able to answer 37% of questions about topics like borrowing, investing, and saving. This is staggering considering that one in seven Gen Z credit-card users have already maxed out their cards, and in the U.S. alone, students hold over $2 trillion in student loan debt.
Overall, one in four Gen Zers are not confident in their financial knowledge and skills—and more than one-third say their parents did not set a good example for them financially, according to WalletHub.
However, not everyone agrees that classes dedicated to personal finance are the best use of students’ time.
One widely-circulated study suggests “there is little evidence that education intended to improve financial decision-making is successful.” It instead suggests greater mathematics training can later lead to greater market participation, investment income, and credit management. Another study said “interventions to improve financial literacy explain only 0.1% of the variance in financial behaviors studied, with weaker effects in low-income samples,” and that required coursework is negligible due to how quickly students may forget what they learned.
Both these studies, however, were written over a decade ago—back when only about five states mandated financial literacy. Now, 21 additional states have passed financial-literacy requirements.
Billy Hensley, president and CEO of the National Endowment for Financial Education, explained that part of the division has been driven by a historic lack of data and the dominance of a small number of studies. Today, he added, the evidence is overwhelming: Financial literacy education works—when done right.
He points to NEFE research, which in part shows students taking state-mandated financial education courses have a 21% less likelihood of carrying a credit-card balance, have on average $1,300 less in private loans, and have a 3.5% increased likelihood of taking out financial aid.
Teaching how to teach personal finance
With a growing number of states requiring personal-finance courses, school districts across the country have had to scramble to find qualified teachers. Yet, in many states, educators do not need to prove expertise in the field before being placed into a personal-finance classroom.
This summer, California became the most recent state to add a financial-literacy requirement to its curriculum. Teachers in social science, business, mathematics, and home economics are specifically authorized to teach the course, but the new law also gives authority to educators in other subjects to oversee personal finance.
Roberts said he is “very concerned” about who is teaching personal finance across the country. While it may be easy to teach some things, like what a checking account is, students need to learn financial proficiency to truly be literate. For example, young adults should be able to discern whether it’s better to buy versus rent a house, or to sign up for a fixed- versus floating-rate mortgage.
“You have to teach the teachers,” Roberts said. “It all has to start there, and the best way to do that is to make them take the course themselves because how many teachers out there have actually been trained and had formal training in personal finance? I doubt very many.”
Ramsey, who has over 2.4 million TikTok followers, agrees that financial literacy in schools is “crucial,” but says personal finance is 20% head knowledge and 80% behavior. His personal-finance curriculum has been taught in over 45% of U.S. high schools.
“Too many students enter adulthood with debt, leading to stress and anxiety, and it’s just not worth it,” Ramsey tells Fortune. “The younger you can learn about handling money, the quicker you can start to build wealth and make a difference in your family tree.”
With the absence of a national strategy, individuals often turn to social media and influencers for financial advice, Hensley shared.
However, a survey found 27% of social-media users have fallen for false or misleading financial information, with younger adults more likely to do so. Only one in 10 financial influencers on TikTok are transparent about their background.
“FinEd is not one-size-fits-all and you cannot believe everything that you see/hear online or in other medium, and there are not any surefire ways to build wealth or financial security quickly. Also, the more popular a particular influencer becomes they are likely to be paid by certain brands, which could influence what they’re telling people,” Hensley said.
A debate with middle ground
While Hensley does not believe education providers are to blame, he said the economic system is broken and has led to the systemic abuse of certain low-income Americans.
In a similar vein, Timothy Ogden, the managing director of the Financial Access Institute, wrote in an op-ed that Americans’ finances are in distress due to “cost of higher education, health insurance, child care and rent have all increased far faster than paychecks.”
However, Ogden and Hensley are on opposite sides of the financial-literacy education requirement debate. Ogden argues an increased knowledge of budgeting or interest rates won’t necessarily change behavior; Hensley, on the other hand, believes financial literacy can truly make a positive impact.
Instead of spending time picking sides, Hensley says energy should be spent making the financial system better for all.
“Everyone (has) had at least one point in their life where they wish they had known much more about personal finance than they did,” Hensley said.