The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago will host a conference, Financial Literacy, Financial Education, and the Federal Reserve: Strategies for Success, on September 11, 2009. This article reviews some of the financial education activities throughout the Federal Reserve System. The topics these initiatives cover include financial skill building,…

Thirty years ago a cashless society was predicted for the near future; paper currency and checks would be an antiquated symbol of the past. Consumers would embrace a new alternative for making payments: electronic money. But currency is still used for 87% of payments, mainly for "nickel and dime" purchases. And checks are the payment…

Financial education is essential, yet on average, adults scored 57 percent on basic economic knowledge, according to the "Standards in Economics Survey" conducted in 1999 for the National Council on Economic Education. The Community Affairs Department at the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland surveyed financial institutions and community…

Interest rates can significantly influence people's behavior. When rates decline, homeowners rush to buy new homes and refinance old mortgages; automobile buyers scramble to buy new cars; the stock market soars, and people tend to feel more optimistic about the future. But even though individuals respond to changes in rates, they may not fully…

To give students the necessary basic economic concepts in the general business course, Monroe-Woodbury High School, Central Valley, New York, expanded the curriculum to offer seven quarter-courses in economics, the court system, principles of banking and insurance, consumer education, the working citizen, and business management. (MF)

This unit, one of a series of six Project SCAT (Skills for Consumer Applied Today) units, is designed to help senior high school students develop consumer education skills. For a description of the specific objectives and format of the units, see SO 013 467. This document provides learning activities, teaching methods, and a student booklet for a…

Designed for the general public and possibly suitable also for high school economics students, this booklet examines the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFT), which protects consumers who use debit cards for the electronic transfer of funds. This commercially adapted version of the character in "Alice in Wonderland," uses a story-teller…

Designed for the general public and possibly suitable also for high school economics students, this pamphlet explains how a complaint against a Federal Reserve bank concerning a possible violation of any of the federal consumer credit laws can be filed. Seven consumer credit laws are listed with a brief statement about the major protections of…

One in a series of consumer education materials for teenagers, this document focuses on banking and banking services. The series is based on the philosophy that teens need the training and guidance to develop the skills needed to become competent consumers. Developed for 4-H Club members, the material is designed to acquaint students with the…

The purpose of this high school consumer education course is to make the student sware of his place in the economic system. This is achieved through the attainment of certain goals: 1) an understanding of the American economic system; 2) the function of money and banking; 3) a consideration of various types of insurance; 4) an identification of…

Activity sheets for seventh and eighth grade student use in economics are contained in this document. Activities are developed in the following areas: checking accounts, bank account applications, check writing, keeping a check register, using checks, budgets, insurance, responsibility and planning, consumer shopping, supermarkets, taxes, help…

This document provides teaching guidelines and student material for a unit intended for use in an eighth grade mathematics or consumer program. Time allotment is from four to five hours of classroom time. The objective of this capsule is to teach the basic concepts of banking, including how a bank makes money for its customers, services which a…

The teacher's guide is for a high school unit on accepting credit responsibility, part of family financial education program which also includes a unit on managing personal income. The components of the unit, correlated with a planned instructional program in any area of economics, can be used to reinforce certain relationships and concepts which…

This document is a text for teaching economics. The book is divided into seven units. Unit 1 is called "What is Economics?" Its seven chapters discuss economics and scarcity, money, the role of the consumer, the role of the producer, capitalism and the free enterprise system, and the circular flow of the economy. The second unit is "How the United…

The student workbook was designed for a high school unit on accepting credit responsibility, part of a family financial education program which also includes a unit on managing personal income. The student book follows the same format as the teacher's guide and is based on six experiences which deal with: factors influencing buying, meaning of…