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Money Matters: The Case for Teaching Financial Literacy

By Anthony S. Colucci

President Obama has made college readiness a major component of his education platform, but is "college readiness" only about being academically prepared? The "MetLife Survey of the American Teacher" recently found that more high school students worry about financing their education than about getting into college or being successful at college. And not long ago, administrators at California State University Fullerton stated that they lose more students to credit card debt than to academic failure.

The National Financial Educators Council defines financial literacy as "possessing the skills and knowledge on financial matters to confidently take effective action that best fulfills an individual's personal, family and global community goals." A Consumer Reports survey of 12-year-olds found that 28 percent didn’t understand that credit cards are a form of borrowing, 40 percent didn't know that banks charge interest on loans, and 34 percent didn't realize that you can't tell how good a product is by...