introduction by Alice Shaffer
Today I heard something awesome on the radio, it was about the Girl Scouts and how they have added new badges in the topic of money & finances. They are “Good Credit,” “Money Manager,” “Budgeting,” and a “Financing My Future” badge. How cool is that! Everyone should have financial literacy, yet our schools and most folks lack it. Our economy and finances have been suffering drastically for several years. As nannies, we sometimes get caught up in the feeling of “keeping up with the Jones”. This can wreck people’s credit and financial future. I was happy to hear about the Girl Scouts wanting to make a positive change in the financial future of girls and women in their program.
I came across Annamaria Lusardi’s blog on FINANCIAL LITERACY AND IGNORANCE. She is the Denit Trust professor of economics and accountancy at the George Washington School of Business. She has taught at many universities including Dartmouth, Harvard and Columbia. I found her blog post on Financial Literacy perfect for today’s individual. So many things have changed in the economy since our parents and grandparents were born.
Ten questions and things to know about financial literacy
5) Why should I become financially literate? Can’t I be happily ignorant?
There are costs of being financially illiterate. Studies show that those who have low financial literacy are less likely to take advantage of the opportunities offered by financial markets (for example, refinancing mortgages when interest rates go down or getting higher returns by investing in stocks and bonds), are less likely to invest in mutual funds with low fees, and are more likely to have problems with debt and to pay higher borrowing costs. Overall, ignorance is not bliss.
to read the entire list of 10 things to know including helpful links please visit
Ten questions and things to know about financial literacy
How did you do on the 10 questions? Are you financial literate or do you have some more learning to do? Anything you would like to add to the list?
Enjoyed the article Alice! Girl Scouts has always had an emphasis on things any girl should know and these badges are just an example. The new badges have been brought up-to-date which is very helpful. I remember our troop working on many of these types of badges – now the girls are in college and they are actively seeing the real world application.