If we are going to work to the goal of making a young person financially literate—or capable— what does that actually entail? It is an important question and there is no single right answer. What it takes to be financially literate in Canada, and what it takes to be financially literate in Malawi, are two different things. It depends on what one might call the four “Cs”—the circumstances, context, culture, and challenges.

Adding a Building Block to Financial Literacy is a Valuable Step

Essentially, what we are hoping to do is equip young people with the knowledge and skills that manifest themselves in behaviours that demonstrate confidence and competence as they undertake their financial decisions and actions. What is required to achieve this, as has been noted, will depend on a variety of things. As an educator, we don’t have to try and do it all. If we can make a meaningful contribution to the building blocks of financial literacy, that is a very worthy contribution. Furthermore, if we are able to demonstrate the value of financial education—how it can make a difference—it can encourage the learner to want to learn more. A motivated learner is one of the best things we can achieve.

Challenge—Prepare Students for a World We Don’t Know Yet

Much of what we may look to teach young people about money and money decisions will change by the time they leave school—and as they move through the years of adult life. Therefore, we can’t really teach them about the decisions that they should make since times, conditions, products, etc. will change over time. What we can aim to do is provide them with the knowledge, tools, and skills to make effective financial decisions. We can build a foundation that will equip them to be lifelong learners—and, if we are successful, we should motivate them to want to learn as we develop their skills to learn.

What is the Goal?

Whether our goal is to make a significant or minor contribution to a young person’s financial literacy, it is always good to have some end target—goals—in mind. To that end, what would best describe the “financially capable person?”

Capability—and Responsibility

Before trying to answer that, another quick point to share is that in addition to helping a young person develop the ability to undertake their financial decisions and actions with competence and confidence, we also face the challenge of helping them understand, and be able to assume, roles and responsibilities that might fall to them. There are matters such as caring about the environment, caring about others in need and who are less fortunate, accepting civic duties and responsibilities, understanding how their decisions and actions may affect others, and so on. Therefore, when considering the “financially capable person,” we also believe we have to address “financial responsibilities.” That is why, when we have engaged experts from around the world in the discussion, we have asked them to offer opinions on the knowledge, skills, and behaviours of the “financially capable and responsible person.”

Financially Capable and Responsible—A Great Debate Topic

There is no firm definition of such a person. In fact, discussing and debating this question can be an engaging and valuable discussion in and of itself. But, we have sought input from a variety of experts from around the world and, for a person in a developed country like Canada, we have come up with the summary that appears on the following page. This can be a reference for you—and you may want to share this with your students. You may wish to make some changes and do up your own version.