LAS VEGAS–A new survey has found most Americans believe financial literacy should be taught in school.
The survey, conducted by the National Financial Educators Council during August, asked 1,211 people, "Do you think high school students should take personal finance courses in high school?" More than 81% responded that students should take financial literacy coursework.
Among the responses:
- Definitely Yes – 47.7%
- Yes – 33.5%
- Maybe – 9.8%
- No – 3.9%
- Definitely No – 5.1%
“The goal of this survey was to measure people's opinions about the value of personal finance education relative to other coursework commonly offered in high school,” according to the NFEC.
Consistent With other Findings
The findings are consistent with prior financial literacy surveys conducted by the National Financial Educators Council in March and July 2017. In those surveys, 7,532 young adults were asked, "What high school-level course would benefit your life the most?"
Respondents (49.97%) chose money management more often than math, science, or social studies: 49.97% selected "Money Management (Personal Finance)."
Respondents across 48 states selected personal finance over all other subjects, with at least 40% in each state choosing personal finance. In only one state did respondents select another subject over personal finance.
Complete survey results may be found at https://www.financialeducatorscouncil.org/financial-literacy-subject-survey.