Financial education should be included as a mandatory subject in school to prepare students for managing money efficiently. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
It is common that students pass out of schools without knowing how to manage their financials. Many are of the perspective that money management should be taught alongside other subjects. In my opinion, despite minor constraints, I contend that that such education would have a great positive impact in the lives of students in the future in different aspects.
People who criticize financial education often fail to understand their relevance and point to the difficulties in incorporating an additional subject into the already packed syllabus of school students. In the school years, the parents support their children at all their expenses. Hence, many people consider the topic to be of less significance. Moreover, it is often seen as an additional cognitive load to the children as their school curriculum could already be packed with many subjects.
However, the induction of financial education can tremendously benefit children once they leave school. From a younger age, their learnings might help them refrain from compulsive buying and when they grow up, this could keep them safe from taking hefty loans or falling into credit card debts. These learnings over the years get compounded where they would be financially intelligent to make decisions on long term investments or early retirements. For instance, it is observed that adults who had someone to guide through their financial journey when they were younger are more likely to manage their money better when they become adults.
In conclusion, there is a widely held perception that financial education is to be introduced compulsorily in schools. Although there are some minor concerns in including them initially into the curriculum, I argue that such subjects have the potential to transform students into financial experts, particularly when they start earning.