How do I fill out tax forms?
What does it mean to build credit? How do I do it?
How do I fill out FAFSA?
Should I take out a student loan?
How can my identity get stolen? What does it mean?
Which bank account should I open? How does interest work?
What is the difference between buying and leasing?
All of these were questions that we had to tackle with Max as he finished high school and moved on to college. These concepts could have easily been taught in many business, health, or social studies classes as he pursued his high school diploma. However, some of these concepts are not easy to teach and many teachers really don’t understand some of the concepts themselves.
Fortunately, the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center (GFLEC) and George Washington University has developed an outstanding group of resources that will teach educators how to deliver financial literacy lessons. With 20 modules available for teachers to digest, it is a fantastic opportunity for teachers to learn about the above questions and many more so they can deliver quality lessons to their students. In turn, the resources in the module can be utilized by the teacher to instruct their students about the various topics. To ensure relevance, each of the 20 modules is aligned to the personal finance national standards. Simply put, the teachers actually learn and learn how to deliver the content!
Motivating teachers to learn new concepts or methods to teach students is not always the easiest chore. One successful method for keeping teachers active in their own professional growth is through the use of micro-credentials. Recently, this was successfully used at the #physedagogy Online Conference where participants earned digital badges for completion of learning tasks. GFLEC has teamed up with Digital Promise, an innovator in professional learning, to create a micro-credential for each of the 20 financial literacy modules. Teachers are guided through the entire process of earning the micro-credential for each of the modules. Thus, they are more likely to stay engaged and complete the process from learning to classroom implementation! Additionally, research has shown that micro-credentialing is one biggest motivators to teachers learning new skills. Put your students on the path to financial literacy and get started on your micro-credentialing journey today.