In the “old days”, personal finance seemed so much more straightforward.
Wages were good enough so that almost anyone could save, and the power of compound interest did the rest. At the same time, it was cheap to get into the housing market, people were more conscious about debt, and the stock market was a no-brainer.
In today’s world, it’s not always so easy. Ultra-low interest rates have fueled a boom in debt and asset prices, making everything from houses to stocks very expensive. Meanwhile, students have accumulated $1.45 trillion in student debt, and grads will be squeezed for years attempting to pay it all off.
The Bold New World
In this challenging new landscape of personal finance, future generations would likely benefit from learning the basics around saving, making budgets, and investing, as well as how to evaluate major personal finance decisions like buying a home or paying for a college education.
Today’s chart looks at one facet of this, which is the percentage of high schools that currently require some sort of personal finance course to graduate.
Using data from a study by financial literacy non-profit Next Gen Personal Finance, it’s clear that the vast majority of students in the U.S. are not required to learn these basic skills and concepts – and things are particularly worse off in lower-income communities.
Access to Financial Literacy
After analyzing data from high schools representing over 85% of all students, the main conclusions of the study were as follows:
- Only 16.4% of U.S. students are required to take a personal finance course to graduate high school.
- Five states do have a personal finance requirement: Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia.
- But outside of these states, the proportion of students with a personal finance requirement drops to 8.6%.
- Meanwhile, only 5.5% of low income schools (outside of mandate states) have personal finance as a requirement.
Why is this important?
To understand why financial literacy is important, look no further than the most recent grad class: millennials.
With $1.45 trillion in student debt, millennials find themselves in a tough spot to begin with – but 45% regret even taking out loans to that extent in the first place. At the same time, only 24% of the generation demonstrates “basic” financial knowledge, while 70% are already stressed about saving for retirement.
A better financial education could definitely help change some of these figures, whether it is through schools, or through vastly improved online resources that students access on their own volition.
Had dinner with a couple gentlemen the other night who have started a foundation to teach teens personal finance. Funny thing happened, they would send the kids home with literature from the class, now they’ve expanded to teach their parents as well. The multi-generational liberal public skools have come home to roost.
” I didn’t buy my house until I had cash “.
Jay Leno almost never uses credit cards.
https://www.cnbc.com/2016/12/12/heres-why-jay-leno-almost-never-uses-credit-cards.html
An HONEST course in personal finance would only help to expose the shell game that is the Federal Government and its never-ending plan to enslave future generations with debts taken on by the current generation of beneficiaries…..and we can’t have anyone educated enough to maybe stand up and say “enough is enough.”
The pretty little nurse attending to my needs today is 24 years old works 3 /12 hour days and off the rest of the week.She also makes 30+ an hour.I already ask her to Merry me . She just smiled .I Know I just had ? surgery but I’m not dead. I’m still going to keep working on her until she throws me out of the hospital.It would have been nice to wake up 25 years younger.Going have to talk to God about that .
That “pretty little nurse” probably has to take a half-dozen deep breaths and pound a pint of vodka before heading into your room. Poor thing. She already has to wipe asses, collect bedpans, clean up vomit and deal with insufferable doctors all day, and then she has to listen to your retarded drivel?
Keep at it, though. Maybe she’ll do us a solid and hold a pillow over your head until you stop kicking. Then you can go meet this Jesus you’re always yammering on about.
I never had the GI Bill.. Went active in 1956. Took until 1974 to get a degree. Don’t owe a dime to anyone and haven’t owed anyone since 1962. Today’s students cannot be taught how to manage finance because the US Government is out to make paupers of every citizen of this country except for the top 1% upon whom they depend. There is not a single financial instrument you can invest in today that pays a decent return on investment and all of them run the risk of leaving you with empty pockets and no recourse.
They can all go fuck themselves. Either I have the cash or I don’t buy it. I use the bank, they don’t use me (I charge 100% of what I buy to a credit card that pays a kickback, pay it off at the end of 30 days so I use their money, they don’t use mine!). The day I can’t pay off the card at the end of the 30 days, I cut it up and go to a cash economy, just like it used to be.
I intend to go out real soon now the exact same way I came in; squalling at the top of my voice, naked as a jay bird and broke.
Muck
p.s. I got a break: my grandfather delivered me at his hospital so my Mom and Dad didn’t even end up in debt when I was born!
Missouri might have a requirement for personal finance education but I can tell you it isn’t working. Like most public education, the kids don’t learn much and just go through the motions like they are taught.