In February, children and teenagers across the country returned to school. In the state of São Paulo, the curricula were reformulated. Among the new features, In addition, two financial education lessons a week will be included in all years of secondary school. The content will also be included in the final years of elementary school.

Over the last ten years, the topic of financial education has gained ground in the press and social media, in the wake of the process of “financial deepening”, or increasing access to financial products and services. Some data illustrate this processThe number of investors on the stock exchange jumped from 700,000 in 2018 to 5 million in 2023, according to the B3 ; In the same period, the number of CPFs registered in the Treasury Direct from 3.1 million to 26.9 million.

Increased access to more sophisticated financial services requires more knowledge in order to avoid excessive risks and compromised financial health. It is therefore understandable that the issue of financial education has been engaging civil entities and government bodies. The ENEF week is an example of this partnership. The event has been taking place since 2014, with the support of the private sector and the participation of credit bureaus.

Now the subject is beginning to reach schools, as a complement to formal education. And there is already evidence that the impact of financial education in elementary school is positive. One a study recently released by the Central Bank of Brazil tracked data from a financial education program aimed at high school students. The program was implemented between 2010 and 2011, and over the course of nine years, participants were monitored to prove the long-term benefits.

In addition to the treatment group, which was subjected to the financial education program, the control group - which did not receive training or books, but participated in the evaluations that did take place - was also followed up over time, so as to enable a rigorous evaluation of the program.

We highlight three conclusions from the study on the long-term effects of teaching financial education. The first is that the students who received the training were 8% less likely to use overdrafts - a method considered expensive - years later.

The study also showed that students who received the training were less likely to delay paying back loans. It also indicated a greater propensity towards entrepreneurship and working in the formal labor market among these students.

Recent data from England and the United States show, however, that the initiatives need to be improved and universalized. In England, according to House of Commons report“, According to the report, since 2014 financial education has been part of the national curriculum for students aged 11 to 16, as part of the teaching of Citizenship and Mathematics. Even so, the document cites a survey which found that only 29% of the young people interviewed remembered having been taught financial education at school.

In the United States, a report from 2023 ranked American states according to their approach to financial education in schools. States classified as “A” offer at least 60 hours of financial education content in the academic year. In this category, only seven states were classified. In category B, where the content is required as part of other subjects, 21 states were counted, while the rest had less or no requirement for financial education in basic education.

Both cases suggest that a separate subject can be more effective than tying finance content to other subjects. In addition to addressing budget management and sources of income, programs should be aware of what's new in the financial world, exploring topics such as credit scores and the logic of concessions.

It's important for young people to start out in the financial system knowing that building a good credit history will be decisive when they need to resort to some form of credit, whether it's to start a business or fulfill a consumer dream.

The subject should also have a life outside of schools. In December 2023, the Central Bank of Brazil and the National Monetary Council (CMN) published the Joint Resolution No. 8, This is a new law, which regulates the financial education measures to be adopted by financial institutions. The requirements include contributing to the organization of the family budget, the formation of savings and the prevention of default.

Aware of this need, the credit bureau sector is committed to disseminating educational content on finance, including for the contingent of the population that has passed school age and is looking for guidance on financial life.

Access to financial services will only produce the desired impact on well-being if, as a society, we are able to broaden our knowledge of how to use these instruments.

Financial citizenship