I’ve got a theory about why financial literacy isn’t more widely taught in schools. (Monday article, “Fewer high school students study finance.”) Teaching kids to think seriously about money before racking up consumer debt could foster a future-oriented public, able to see the long-term value of money rather than the immediate rewards of shopping.
At first it sounds like a good idea. But how can credit card companies farm another generation of debtors on high interest rates if kids leave school knowing what interest rates mean? What will happen to the stock market if consumers stop feeding next quarter’s corporate profits?
No, we must keep kids ignorant about debt, and especially about how they might become producers of value rather than consumers. They are a crucial demographic, and the future of corporate America depends on them.
Michael Lockhart
Marysville
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