If you find it difficult to cover your expenses and pay bills, spend less than your income and/or figure out retirement saving needs, you are not alone. According to the latest research from FINRA Investor Education Foundation, approximately 60% of Arizonans fall into each of the above categories.
As members of the Arizona Financial Literacy Task Force, created and chaired by Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee, we recognize the difference that financial literacy can make to Arizonans of all ages. We also recognize that schools play a critical role as the level playing field, ensuring all students can learn and build a foundation for a secure future.
By integrating age-appropriate, experiential financial education across grade levels, students can be emboldened to make informed financial decisions. However, to ensure success, teachers should be equipped with the tools, resources and training they need, at no financial cost to them or their students.
Fortunately, financial education materials are readily available. Through EconReads, even young children can begin to understand key concepts such as earning income, saving, opportunity cost, and productive resources. Middle school students can explore saving and investing through the SIFMA Foundation’s Stock Market Game. And high school students can prepare for real-world responsibilities like career planning, budgeting and managing family finances through Financial Fitness in Action.
Financial literacy isn’t a one-time subject to learn, it is an ongoing life lesson with the need for daily vigilance. No matter your age or financial experience, we encourage you to be mindful of the following:
Protect your personal information. Don’t give out information such as your phone number, home address, birthdate or Social Security number to just anyone. Learn to recognize attempts to trick you or steal your information, such as through phishing emails and imposter phone calls and texts.
Recognize the dangers of phone apps and “cookie consent” pop-up boxes. Since apps and social media are part of everyday life for many Arizonans, it can be easy to overlook the risk involved with making personal information accessible online. However, it is important to realize that information can be recorded, bought, and sold by companies running the apps.
Don’t sign anything you don’t read or understand. If you are 18 or older and agree to something in writing, failing to read and understand it before signing is not a valid legal excuse.
Ask for help when you need it. Financial paperwork can be very confusing, even to experienced adults. If you have a document, get mail or receive a phone call you don’t quite understand, ask a trusted adult for help. Most of the time, the solutions are easier to navigate if you ask someone who’s been through it before.
Editor’s note: Elena Zee is president and CEO of the Arizona Council on Economic Education, a Paradise Valley-based nonprofit offering tools, including free economics guides ranging from elementary to high school curriculum. Diane E. Brown is executive director of the Arizona Public Interest Research Group Education Fund, a Gilbert-based nonprofit that provides tips for teaching financial literacy and privacy protection to individuals of all ages.
