Study: MoneySKILL Improves Financial Literacy
The AFSA Education Foundation is finishing Financial Literacy Month with a bang by releasing impressive research findings from an impact evaluation done in collaboration with Professor of Economics Dr. Carly Urban from Montana State University.
The evaluation measured changes in financial behaviors and knowledge, specifically among middle school, high school, and college MoneySKILL users between 2014-2022.
The Effects on Financial Knowledge and Behaviors study built upon a prior evaluation to see if MoneySKILL persisted during the pandemic. Furthermore, it examined which types of communities are most likely to adopt MoneySKILL and sought to better understand for whom MoneySKILL is most effective.
Dr. Urban found that despite the COVID-19 pandemic’s disruption to schools, MoneySKILL remained impactful for students and the demand for MoneySKILL was similar across demographic groups.
Knowledge gains remained consistent through the pandemic and short-term financial behaviors continued to improve. Further, the short-run knowledge improvements were the largest among those from areas with higher poverty, suggesting MoneySKILL has a higher return for students from more vulnerable households.
More than 1.4 million students and teachers have enrolled in MoneySKILL since its inception in 2002. The positive impact of the MoneySKILL curriculum from a knowledge and behavior perspective remained with 90% of MoneySKILL students seeing improvements in financial knowledge and an average knowledge gain of 65% when comparing pre- and post-test exams. Additionally, the adoption of MoneySKILL in high schools continued to increase a school’s total FAFSA® applications, indicating more students are taking advantage of lower-cost college financing options. Areas using and not using MoneySKILL are very similar across economic and demographic characteristics, suggesting that educators select the curriculum for a diverse set of students.
To learn more about the research, check out the infographic and full research report.
April 26th, 2023 by Dan Bucherer
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