Iowa Financial Literacy Standards & Mandates

Iowa requires students to complete a 1-semester course on personal finance to graduate. While this mandate represents a positive step toward ensuring students acquire essential financial knowledge, it falls short of meeting the minimum educational standards established for other core high school subjects. As a result, students who complete the proposed coursework may not be adequately prepared to face near-term financial challenges.

While our review is critical, we want to express our gratitude to everyone dedicated to advancing legislation aimed at teaching financial literacy. Thank you for your time and effort in developing this bill to its current stage. Our critique stems from a place of constructive feedback to improve existing mandates and enhance bills to ensure they make a significant and lasting impact on our youth. We are committed to fostering a future where financial literacy is not just taught but is impactful and meaningful for the generations to come.

Iowa Financial Education Mandates Ranking

Unfortunately, Iowa’s financial literacy mandate falls significantly short, failing to meet 10 out of 12 key measures and only conditionally addressing two areas. While the mandate is well-intentioned, it raises serious concerns due to the absence of many crucial elements necessary for ensuring positive outcomes for students.

Massachusetts Financial Literacy Standards & Mandates Bill H.4199 & S.2665

Iowa’s Financial Literacy Mandates

Recommended Policy for IA Financial Literacy Programs

To address the gap in standards for personal finance education, the National Financial Educators Council has developed a set of benchmarks for all grade levels, K-12. This policy guide offers legislatures a framework that standardizes educational quality and learner outcomes to provide the best possible financial education for American youth.

The Standards Guide is based on the notion that financial education should be treated the same as any other topic taught in schools and that all students should at minimum be capable of making near-term financial decisions.

National Standards for Financial Education

Financial Literacy Standards for Older Youth & Adults (High School through Adults)

Although there is no direct mandate by the California State Board of Education, it is recommended that national standards be implemented. Financial education is a unique subject; all participants have developed financial habits and relationships with money before instruction begins.
National standards are those that have been proven in empirical and theoretical research to produce the highest improvements in participant test scores.

Download Learner Standards

Financial Literacy Standards for Kids (Kids PK through 8th Grade)

In collaboration with education leader Heidi Jacobs, the NFEC created these financial literacy standards to define learning goals and educational targets for optimal child financial education. Guided by strong pedagogical theory, the standards ensure that instructional targets are age- and developmentally-appropriate and that lessons can be effectively scaffolded. Standards represent five sections based on topic areas in the NFEC curriculum.

Download Learner Standards

Standards for Financial Education Instructors

The NFEC teamed with the well-known Danielson Group to develop the first and only national standards for financial educators – The Framework for Teaching Personal Finance – to define optimal educator skill sets and performance levels. The framework also identifies the financial educator responsibilities empirically proven to produce highest gains in participant test scores. This framework is used in all 50 states, including California.

Download Educator Standards Synopsys

National Financial Educators Council, State Financial Literacy Standards

National Financial Educators Council, State Chapters

Iowa Financial Literacy Standards

Iowa residents may wonder how the Hawkeye State compares in terms of establishing standards for financial education in public schools. According to the Center for Financial Literacy at Champlain College, Iowa merits a “A” grade in that arena. High school students most take at least one half unit of financial education before graduating. However, how to implement this is not set, and no dedicated class in financial education is required. So the half unit could potentially be distributed between multiple courses focused on other subjects. Local districts are charged with responsibility to determine how these topics are introduced into the high school curriculum.

In 2014, Iowa released the Financial Literacy Work Team Report indicating a need for increased emphasis on financial literacy benchmarks in schools. The Champlain College summary states, “The report includes many excellent recommendations that would help increase the quality of financial literacy instruction in Iowa classrooms,” and therefore gives the Hawkeye State extra credit for this effort. Further, the Iowa governor and state officials recently held a summit to discuss ways to help students reduce college debt and avoid credit card problems.

The Economic Education Council provides a synopsis of Iowa financial education standards as follows: personal finance is included in Iowa’s K-12 standards which must be implemented by districts. However, no high school course must be offered/taken, and no testing standards have been set.