Financial education at schools: Maintal prepares students for the future!

Financial education at schools: Maintal prepares students for the future!

Maintal, Deutschland - What is happening in Main Valley? A fresh wind blows through the Erich Kästner School, where Daniel Junker works as a money teacher for born 9 and 10. In class, he not only teaches the pupils theoretical knowledge, but also practical skills related to financial education. Headmistress Stefanie Thor has fully adopted this innovative approach and supports the project as much as possible. It is clearly communicated that financial education is crucial for the development of responsibility and independence, especially at a time when many young people are faced with increasing expenses.

In today's youth, wishful thinking is great - be it a new cell phone, a trip or a driver's license. The parts of Junker cover the topics of budgeting, saving, investing and loans. This is done through modern teaching methods such as role -playing games, simulations and interactive workshops. Here the students can not only learn, but also practically try out dealing with money. The school has developed a concept that goes beyond the traditional curriculum to offer practical experience that is important in real life.

Financial education in practice

The feedback from the students is consistently positive, and the increasing demand for financial programs underlines the relevance of these educational offers. Thor and Junker agree: financial education should be an integral part of the school curriculum. Your goal is to optimally prepare the students for the financial reality after graduation. According to a study by the banking association, a considerable part of the young generation feels a growing interest in financial issues. 75% of the respondents find it important to deal with it, while 56% indicate that they have regularly left of their funds.

The developments in Maintal are in line with the growing knowledge about the financial behavior of young people. According to the 2024 youth study, 34% of young people have a regular interest in financial planning and almost a third deals with “occasionally”. In addition, 31% of young people show interest in investments in stocks and securities. This trend can be seen especially among the 21- to 24-year-olds, while the use of digital platforms and apps facilitates access to the capital market.

The challenges in the financial sector

Nevertheless, there are challenges that should not be lost sight of. The gender -specific differences are remarkable: While 43% of the male surveyed investments in securities keep it, it is only 17% for female. In addition, female adolescents have an average of 684 euros a month, while male have 990 euros. These differences show the need for targeted education and support so that all students receive the same opportunities in financial education.

The Erich Kästner School takes up a pioneering role here. With her innovative concept and the integration of realistic methods in financial lessons, she optimally prepares the students for the challenges of later life. And the signs are that the need for such a practice -oriented education will continue to grow, because financial independence is a great asset for young people.