Teaching and learning financial literacy within social studies – a case study on how to realise curricular aims and ambitions

ABSTRACT Most salient financial literacy frameworks and curricula mainly focus on teaching and learning of simple money management. However, the financial demands placed on individuals today include much more complicated matters, such as buying a home and saving for retirement. Furthermore, financial literacy gives rise to normative questions such as what responsibility should be placed on individuals. In educational terms, this creates an alignment problem where the hopes and expectations placed in financial literacy as mass-education is not met by desirable results. This article uses previous results and the construct of powerful knowledge to discuss how financial literacy education in upper secondary school can benefit from an incorporation into social studies, which is an existing school subject in many educational systems. Findings include that teachers can utilize their existing teaching competence to also teach financial literacy. However, to accomplish results, both curricula and syllabi must guide teachers to abandon the focus on money management to instead focus on teaching students concerning the financial, economic and political issues that affect personal finances, yet at the same time can be affected by democratic decisions. Implications for financial literacy teaching and learning are discussed using the concept Powerful Financial Literacy.