This action research study explored how women perceived the influences of collaborative software development methodologies on workplace culture at one financial technology firm. While collaborative software development methodologies were not designed to increase gender diversity, the transformational shifts in the way technology teams work…

More than half of U.S. states have enacted policies to expand financial literacy education in schools with kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12) with the goal of improving students' financial literacy skills. Although financial literacy education can be key to building long-term financial capabilities and well-being, more information is needed on…

RAND researchers conducted a study that aimed to fill the information gap on how to successfully implement a statewide financial education mandate by studying the implementation of Nevada's 2017 financial literacy education reform. The study focused on the reform enacted by the Nevada Legislature in 2017, Senate Bill 249, which required that…

Since 2012, the Prudence Foundation has been working to address the gap in financial literacy in developing nations by creating and distributing financial literacy media and curricula targeting 7- to 10-year-olds in Asia and, more recently, Africa. "Cha-Ching!" is a multipronged learning initiative that reaches children, teachers, and…

This report shares findings from EDC's evaluation study of "Cha-Ching Money Adventures." "Cha-Ching" is an interactive learning game that introduces 7- to 10-year-olds to fundamental financial concepts and fosters family dialogue about financial decisions. The authors found that the game was engaging for eight- and…

There is a growing concern in this country that the middle class is disappearing and not in the way one would hope. Instead of families moving into a higher socio-economic class and being able to provide richer life experiences for themselves and their children, vast numbers are shifting to a lower socio-economic status level. The gap between the…

This report examines the results of the Personal Financial Literacy Curriculum Survey (PFLCS). The PFLCS was designed by Miami-Dade County Public Schools' (M-DCPS) Office of Program Evaluation and Department of Social Sciences to gain insight into a baseline measure of financial literacy proficiency by grade level and student demographics.…

Research on adult English learners (ELs) typically focuses on language-related skills. However, adult ELs may also need instruction in numeracy to navigate daily life or understand health information. Little is known about how ELs use numeracy skills in their home lives and connections of skill use with related electronic numeracy skills. This…

Escalating college costs have far-reaching implications, especially for low-income and first-generation students. Lack of financial literacy can negatively affect the success of these learners and may have long-lasting consequences, yet there is a lack of literature about the borrowing and repayment obligations related to student loans of…

Through the work of Y-PLAN (Youth--Plan, Learn, Act, Now) youth-led action research, the University of California Berkeley Center for Cities + Schools (CC+S) has focused its research on youth experiencing homelessness in California public schools. This research analyzed the McKinney-Vento Act from system-wide implementation perspectives, as well…

This research study sought to determine whether pre-reading assignments have an impact on a student's academic performance. Learning a new topic which oftentimes seems foreign is never easy. However, reading a short article or reviewing a slide-show presentation on the lecture topic before the lecture happens (otherwise known as a pre-reading…

The purpose of this convergent mixed method study was to determine whether or not there is a difference in the perceived and actual financial literacy scores of millennials. Exploring the following research questions and hypotheses helped to expand knowledge around actual financial literacy and several other characteristics, including perceived…

Despite the U.S. having one of the highest college access and participation rates in the world, equity gaps exist that impact access and success for first-generation, low-income, underrepresented students in higher education (Cahalan et al., 2020). The goal of going to college is often imperiled for first-generation, low-income, transfer students…

This study aimed to understand how emerging adults achieve financial independence by asking how emerging adults who are college graduates describe their experiences with the process of achieving financial independence. Using a generic qualitative design, this study drew connections between emerging adult college graduates' common experiences and…

The Center for Universal Education (CUE) at Brookings has been investigating efforts to scale and sustain evidence-based initiatives leading to large-scale improvements in children's learning. CUE has been implementing a series of collaborative action research initiatives called Real-time Scaling Labs (RTSL), in partnership with local institutions…