Press Release
Starting in September, 2011, Grade 4-12 students in Ontario will be learning to make informed choices and effective decisions about the use and management of money.
The global economic challenges of the past year have highlighted the need to ensure a financially-literate population.
To determine how to introduce financial literacy into Ontario’s curriculum, a working group, co-chaired by parliamentary assistant Leeanna Pendergast, will provide a report to the Ministry of Education’s Curriculum Council next summer.
The working group will seek input from a variety of educational and financial sector experts to:
•identify the core financial concepts that constitute “financial literacy”;
•develop a list of financial literacy concepts and skills; and
•advise how to seamlessly integrate the list into the existing curriculum.
The Ministry of Education also will work in partnership with the Investor Education Fund to develop resources and professional development opportunities for teachers.
“Our goal is to develop a made-in-Ontario solution that aims to be a leading example—globally—of how financial education can be integrated into schools,” said Education minister Kathleen Wynne.
“By including financial literacy in our publicly-funded education system, we are giving our students the critical skills they need to navigate an increasingly complex global financial and economic system,” echoed Pendergast.
“Basic financial skills are a critical building block in every person’s education,” stressed Tom Hamza, president of the Investor Education Fund.
“Integrating financial skills development throughout the curriculum ensures that Ontario students have the knowledge to make effective decisions throughout their lives,” he added.
In the current Grade 9-12 curriculum, the topic of personal finance is addressed in various courses in business studies, mathematics, guidance and career education, social sciences, and humanities.
The Curriculum Council is a group of knowledgeable, committed community leaders and education experts brought together in March, 2007 to advise the minister of education on elementary and secondary school curriculum.
