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Utah Students Improve Their Money Savvy

Posted on: Friday, 14 April 2006, 21:00 CDT

By Sheena McFarland, The Salt Lake Tribune

Apr. 14--Utah students understand money and how to use it better than their national counterparts, but they still have a long way to go before they can call themselves financially literate.

The national Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy surveyed high school seniors, asking about topics ranging from car insurance to loans to credit cards. Students in Utah answered 55 percent of the questions correctly, which was three percentage points higher than the national average.

Utah's scores rose about five percentage points from their last testing in 2004. The test is administered every two years.

"We are pleased to see this progress, although small, in understanding financial literacy in Utah," said Lynn Rowe, Utah coalition chairman.

Several Utah high schools have volunteered to teach pilot financial literacy courses.

However, the class of 2008 must pass a semester-long financial literacy course to meet a new graduation requirement.

Rowe hopes that requirement will cut down on financial problems in Utah, which is in the top five states for most family bankruptcies. Utahns are twice as likely to file for bankruptcy as their peers nationwide, Rowe said.

While layoffs, illnesses or unexpected deaths lead to some bankruptcies, many are caused by poor money management.

"There is often an unbridled use of credit, unwise spending and trying to do too much with the money wage-earners bring into the household," Rowe said.

The courses teach students not only how to balance a checkbook and budget, but also about why and how spending habits develop, said Jodi Jones, coalition board member.

"Young people often fall into the desire for instant gratification. They see the new iPod, and they immediately want it," Jones said. "One of the objectives tries to relate financial decisions to personal and societal consequences, and helps students recognize those and informs them they need to be responsible for their own finances."

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Salt Lake Tribune

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Source: The Salt Lake Tribune

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