By Shannon Schuyler, U.S. Corporate Responsibility Leader for PricewaterhouseCoopers.

I come from a family of educators. While I didn’t choose a similar career path, some might find it ironic that I devote as much time as I can to connecting with teachers to better understand the challenges they face, particularly as it relates to teaching financial literacy. Their perspective informs the solution.

Trust me when I tell you that there is no shortage of teachers out there with a desire to help prepare their “kids” to make responsible financial decisions. The recent financial crisis made it very apparent that our individual financial well being is a responsibility each of us must own, and that starts with understanding from an early age how our choices impact our financial stability. Read more…

POSTED: April 29, 2013 | BY: Leslie Rasimas | TAGS: corporate responsibility, Financial Literacy, financial literacy month, personal finance, teachers

By Joan Rosenbaum, 5th Grade Social Studies and Economics Teacher, North Star Public Charter School, Idaho.

Every year I take my students through a personal financing/budgeting unit, and I try to make it as real as possible. I am fortunate to have a guest speaker come to my classroom and explain the importance of having good insurance, which is definitely an important part of one’s budget.

One year I had a student who came to me and told me he didn’t want to pay for insurance. I asked him if he was really sure he wanted go through life without insurance. He told me he thought it would be a waste of his money. Since economics has everything to do with choices, I agreed to let him not pay insurance, but asked him if he was really sure about his choice he was making. He assured me that he did not want to include that in his budget. Read more…

POSTED: April 26, 2013 | BY: Leslie Rasimas | TAGS: economics, Financial Literacy, financial literacy month, insurance, Lessons, personal finance, Students, teachers

By Thomas Bright, Marketing and Web Content Writer, ClearPoint Credit Counseling Solutions.

Today, our nation’s students are faced with an increasing number of financial decisions and are given a decreasing margin for error. Without access to the right kind of information, these students may run into very serious financial problems. As the adults in the room, the parents and educators, we are left to find a solution. An education-based solution, one that teaches financial literacy as an experience and prepares students for all the firsts they will encounter, could be the answer we have been looking for. Read more…

POSTED: April 25, 2013 | BY: Leslie Rasimas | TAGS: Debt, Financial Aid, Financial Literacy, financial literacy month, loans, personal finance, Student Loans, Students

By Nancy Phillips, BS, EMBA, Author and Speaker; Founder & President, DollarSmartKids Enterprises, Inc.; Creator of the Zela Wela Kids. Nancy is the mother of two elementary school-aged children.

As parents, we are automatic educators, and we want our children to learn the skills they’ll need to thrive and reach their full potential in life. This is true for parents around the world. With the financial industry and global culture changing as rapidly as they are today, it’s easy to see that our children need guidance; current, effective, honest information, that has their best interest and future well-being at heart.

The Lessons Must Have These Key Elements

These core financial life lessons must involve a combination of information, beginning with inspirational and motivational messages, so children understand how the information can affect their individual lives. The messages must also be simple, and effective – so the lessons are implemented and become habit. Beneficial learning only occurs if the new information is implemented, thus creating positive decision-making skills and behavior. Read more…

POSTED: April 23, 2013 | BY: Leslie Rasimas | TAGS: children, Financial Literacy, financial literacy month, give, invest, parents, personal finance, save, Saving, spend, Students

Live Webinar: The Nation’s Report Card: Economics 2012, Grade 12
April 24, 2013, at 11 am EDT

Register here (we encourage you to submit a question in advance through the registration page). Join the conversation on Twitter by using #NAEPtalk during the webinar.

Nan J. Morrison, President and CEO of CEE, was an adviser on the project, and she will take part in the webinar.

Are American students equipped to negotiate economic realities?

With constant changes in the housing, job, and stock markets, not to mention international trade, American students more than ever need to know how our economy connects with the world around us. As tomorrow’s consumers, investors, and voters, are students equipped to interpret financial news, make decisions about negotiating a college loan, and understand how economic policies affect their wallets?

The Nation’s Report Card: Economics 2012, Grade 12 reveals how well 12th-grade students know and apply the concepts of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and international trade in real-world contexts, as measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Join the National Assessment Governing Board for a webinar exploring the results of this timely report. Webinar panelists include Nan J. Morrison, CEE’s President and CEO; and Edward Alvarez, Assistant Principal, Thomas A. Edison Career & Technical Education High School, who was honored at the 2012 Visionary Awards as one of CEE’s Teacher Champions.

POSTED: April 22, 2013 | BY: Leslie Rasimas | TAGS: 9-12, CEO, economics, Panel Discussion, Research, Students, visionary awards, webinar

By Congressman Rubén Hinojosa, Representing the 15th District of Texas.

In 2005, former Congresswoman Judy Biggert and I came together to form the Financial and Economic Literacy Caucus. Judy, a Republican, and myself, a Democrat, found common ground when it came to the importance of financial literacy. I am happy to report that Congressman Steve Stivers, Republican of Ohio, is our new co-chair for the Caucus. We will once again sponsor a House Resolution declaring April as Financial Literacy Month, and the annual Financial Literacy Day on Capitol Hill will be held on Friday, April 26 in the Cannon Caucus Room in Washington, D.C.

The message of the Caucus is a nonpartisan one: We need to empower young people with the information they need in order to make healthy financial decisions throughout their lives. A focus on financial literacy makes sense for policymakers from either party; financial empowerment can alleviate poverty and attack inequality, while also providing Americans the tools to be financially independent and self-reliant. This will not only ensure their families’ own financial security, but will contribute to the stability and growth of the entire economy. Read more…

POSTED: April 22, 2013 | BY: Leslie Rasimas | TAGS: Capitol Hill, Dodd-Frank, Financial Literacy, financial literacy month, personal finance, Politics