There is growing research that shows the importance of ensuring teachers feel comfortable with the concepts associated with personal finance and the pedagogical approaches to teaching them.
Research, supported by the Jump$tart Teacher Training Alliance and the National Endowment for Financial Education, evaluated a pilot personal finance teacher training program. This program used customizable, three- to five-day training sessions. The research report showed that educators significantly improved their own financial behavior and confidence in teaching the material. Additionally to the research paper, The features and effectiveness of the Keys to Financial Success curriculum, published in the International Review of Economic Education, showed that students improved their financial knowledge through the Keys to Financial Success curriculum, a one-semester course that includes a teacher-training component. There is also supporting evidence globally. A research study, authored by Dr. Veronica Frisancho, conducted in Peru showed that both students and teachers improved their financial knowledge as the result of a financial education course that involved a teacher training component before course implementation.
Since 1971, Economic Literacy Colorado (formerly Colorado Council for Economic Education) has provided training for K–12 Colorado teachers on how to integrate personal finance and economics into classroom curriculum for low or no cost. Their resources include year-round university-accredited professional development classes and materials and workshops. These workshops are part of the Colorado Statewide K–12 Personal Financial Literacy Initiative sponsored by the Colorado Office of the Attorney General in partnership with Colorado Jump$tart Coalition, the Colorado Department of Education, and Economic Literacy Colorado. The organization also works with individual school districts to provide customized teacher in-service trainings with tailored workshops in economics and/or personal finance. For teachers located in remote rural communities, ELC provides rural outreach programs.
The Colorado Department of Education provides sample instructional units in personal financial literacy. These units are authored by a team of Colorado educators, funded by Great West Financial, and intended to support teachers (and schools) in determining the best educational plans and practices for all students. Some of the sample units are available through the Colorado Department of Education.
In Wisconsin, there has been a strong focus on training teachers in finance. Seeing a pressing need to educate Wisconsin youth about financial literacy, Wisconsin Jump$tart Coalition members launched the National Institute of Financial and Economic Literacy in 2001 to create a low-cost, high-quality training program for all educators with free teaching materials and resources. The Institute began as a one-week program, and by 2004, grew to offer three one-week sessions. In 2005, the institute was able to offer the program to educators nationally. The Institute offers three courses annually and is housed at Edgewood College.
