A praxis approach to financial literacy education

ABSTRACT

Financial literacy education (FLE) typically focuses on teaching skills and capabilities that promote individual wealth accumulation—for example, the importance of working, budgeting and saving. In this article, we argue the need to move from an individual wealth accumulation focus in FLE to a praxis approach to FLE. We outline the shortcomings of the conventional approach to FLE and develop a conceptual framework for a praxis approach to FLE. We view praxis as the moral, ethical and caring aspect of teaching. Using the conceptual framework, we argue that a praxis approach to FLE includes full attention to: how financial decision-making affects others and self; acknowledging that some life decisions are not financially rewarding; understanding that improving financial mathematics skills and capabilities may not equate to an increase in income; how SES affects an individual’s ability to save and maintain long-term saving; and the ways in which gender, culture, values, psychological state, socioeconomic class and ethics shape identity and their impact on financial decision-making.

KEYWORDS:

• Financial literacy education
• social justice
• mathematics
• praxis

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Dr Carly Sawatzki, at the Deakin University for her helpful contribution, comments and insights in the early stages of this manuscript. We would also like to thank the anonymous Reviewers who provided invaluable feedback that shaped this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Levon Ellen Blue

Levon Ellen Blue is a Senior Lecturer at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). Her PhD focused on financial literacy education practices in a Canadian Aboriginal community. Levon’s research area includes financial literacy education, entrepreneurship education, Indigenous education, and social justice. She is a Chief Investigator on two Australian Research Council funded grants: special research initiative – National Indigenous Research and Knowledges Network (NIRAKN) and Discovery Indigenous – Empowering Indigenous businesses through improved financial and commercial literacy.

Peter Grootenboer

Professor Peter Grootenboer previously worked in schools for 12 years as a teacher and leader before moving into the tertiary sector. In 1997 he received a Jim Campbell Award – a national award for teaching excellence in mathematics in New Zealand. Peter completed his MEd and EdD through the University of Waikato focussing on mathematics education and educational leadership (staff development and appraisal). The main focus of Peter’s research has been on affective development in mathematics learning, and recently he has focussed more tightly on praxis development, middle leading and action research.