How to Include Parents In Students’ Financial Literacy Education

Studies show that parental involvement can enhance learning outcomes—particularly when it comes to financial education (Hill NE, Tyson DF 2009). The more often a child or young adult goes home and discusses what they’ve learned with their parents, the more likely they’ll be open to increasing their knowledge of that topic. Such practices also introduce a healthy way for families to discuss financial education openly. One where both students and parents walk away learning new and useful concepts.

Why Parental Involvement In Education Matters

Parental support can reinforce what a student learns in the confines of a classroom environment. When parents provide their children with real-world examples, they become that tie a student needs to a more personalized and relatable education. They’ll also hear accounts of first-hand financial experiences that show them why it’s so important to educate themselves now on financial matters before life requires them to already know the answers.

But what if parents don’t want to be involved? As an educator, it’s not uncommon to run into the age-old challenge that some parents are too busy to consistently involve themselves with their child’s classroom studies. But there are ways to encourage them including showing them how important financial education is for both them and their child. 

This topic is unique in that it impacts a parent as much as it does a teen and young adult. In fact, according to a study done by the Pew Research Center in 2019, 36% of parents experience some sort of financial strain providing continued support to adult children. And only 45% of young adults are fully financially independent, with higher rates in older age groups. If parents want to set their kids up for success and lessen the possibility of future financial strain on themselves, they should be involved in their student’s financial education journey.

Strategies for Involving Parents

Opening the door to opportunities for parents to be  involved in their child’s financial education goes a long way. What that involvement looks like can vary based on time constraints, but offering parents regular updates on a student’s improvements in parent teacher meetings could be just the start. Try incorporating some of these other opportunities:

Workshops and Seminars: Organize sessions on financial literacy for parents and students to attend together. 

Home-Based Activities: Provide take-home materials and activities for parents to do with their children. This could be workbooks, worksheets, study projects, a three jar allowance challenge (with fake or real money), a student-focused credit card activity, or many other options.

Online Courses & Apps: Utilize financial literacy apps, online courses, and resources that parents and students can use together.

Resources and Tools: Sign up as a Banzai teacher for access to a slew of resources (both online and off) that you can use to involve parents in their child’s education. And even better, it’s all free! These resources include…

Sample Schedules: Try curriculum guides that show you how to pair key resources together to effectively use Banzai curriculum as a supplement to your existing lesson plans.

Educational Tools: Use online articles, courses, quizzes, vocab practice, etc., all built to be engaging and educational to your students.

Adult Educational Resources: Recommend content from the Banzai Wellness Center, a library of financial education resources made for adults, to ease the fears of parents who may feel nervous about discussing financial topics. 

By taking proactive steps in engaging parents, you’re bettering more than just the next generation of minds. You’re helping families build financial knowledge together. Parental involvement not only reinforces classroom learning but also provides real-world context and personal experiences, making financial education more relatable and impactful. Utilizing workshops, home-based activities, and digital tools, educators can create a collaborative environment where both students and parents benefit, ultimately contributing to a more financially literate society.

Sources:

1. Hill NE, Tyson DF. Parental involvement in middle school: a meta-analytic assessment of the strategies that promote achievement. Dev Psychol. 2009 May;45(3):740-63. doi: 10.1037/a0015362. PMID: 19413429; PMCID: PMC2782391.
2. Pew Research Center. “Financial Help and Independence in Young Adulthood.” Last modified January 25, 2024. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2024/01/25/financial-help-and-independence-in-young-adulthood/.