The Wall Street Journal – Alok Deshpande
“Advocates of financial education are at odds. In this week’s WSJ Experts blog, economist Annamaria Lusardi of George Washington University offers a direct rebuttal to recent research advocating for “just in time” financial education. At the core of the debate is a simple question: Can we help consumers make better financial decisions with traditional education (e.g., part of school’s curriculum) or education closer to when they’re making a specific financial choice? While the debate offers an interesting dialogue, the reality is that both trains have left the station but one is moving significantly faster. It’s time to get on board and, ultimately, embrace both. Let’s start with traditional financial education. This battle has been going on for decades. Supporters want financial education as a required part of the K-12 curriculum. In 2013, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) provided direct recommendations along these lines in their white paper entitled, “Transforming the Financial Lives of a Generation of Young Americans.” While the recommendations are solid, policy changes take time. Schools are governed at the state level and, today, only a handful of states require a stand-alone personal-finance course. Others states will come on board over time but, again, policy changes are slow and have multiple competing priorities.”(more)