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Financial Education in General Education Schools: A Competence Model

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International Handbook of Financial Literacy

Abstract

The authors argue that being financially educated means more than being financially literate, and that financial education can and should be seen as a proper subset of economic education. To underpin this thesis, the chapter conceptualizes an enhanced understanding of financial education, which is closely connected to a competence model for economic education that is the subject of widespread discussion in Germany and has influenced school curricula in the recent past. The model comprises three areas of development for economic competence, each of which is identified by three competences one should possess in order to meet fundamental requirements in “economically shaped” life situations. Such situations are seen as including “financially shaped” life situations, which demand similar or even the same processes of analysis and judgment, routines and strategies. This model should consequently also be well suited to financial contexts and content. The authors’ aim is to propose a set of distinct and structured, trainable and attainable, transferable competence goals for secondary schools. Although this model has been developed for general education in Germany, it should be applicable to different national education systems and various curricular settings.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chair of Economics and Economic Education, Campus Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstraße 12, 45141, Essen, Germany

    Thomas Retzmann

  2. Institute for Social Sciences, Department of Economics, Universität Koblenz-Landau, August-Croissant-Str. 5, 76829 Landau, Germany

    Günther Seeber

Authors
  1. Thomas Retzmann
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  2. Günther Seeber
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Correspondence to Thomas Retzmann .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Friedrich Schiller University Jena , Jena, Germany

    Carmela Aprea

  2. Goethe Universität Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany

    Eveline Wuttke

  3. Johannes Gutenberg Unversity Mainz, Mainz, Germany

    Klaus Breuer

  4. National Institute of Education Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Noi Keng Koh

  5. University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom

    Peter Davies

  6. Vienna University of Economics and Business, Vienna, Wien, Austria

    Bettina Greimel-Fuhrmann

  7. California State University, East Bay, Long Beach, California, USA

    Jane S. Lopus

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Retzmann, T., Seeber, G. (2016). Financial Education in General Education Schools: A Competence Model. In: Aprea, C., et al. International Handbook of Financial Literacy. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0360-8_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0360-8_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-10-0358-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-10-0360-8

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