Sunday, June 3, 2012

AusAID Again?

AusAID seems to be taking a greater stance on the advancement of our curriculum: they're sponsoring the CDU (Curriculum Development Unit) to try to get the next generation to use money properly:

For the primary school students, they are taught things like budgeting, investments basics, theyre even taught taxation and how to save their money, she said.
She said they wanted teachers to be equipped and be well versed with the program before it is introduced to all schools next year.
Firstly, I am a little concerned about the reporting of the piece because it wasn't explained in a way that I could understand. This was mostly because it's being reported that children will learn about taxation.

It's a wonder how they'll get children to understand the spectrum that is taxation for one; I remember my peers in primary struggling with the concept of percentages.

It is comforting to see (while it was phrased as both "budgeting" and "how to save money" in the same line) that we are teaching children how to use money.

While the impacts may take a while to appear, it is nice to see that there is some investment in their understanding as well as a holistic approach to education.

Not knowing how to budget is easily something us holding back as a country. We don't have investing as a viable option because we are basically living hand to mouth (or, if you prefer, hand to half to mouth and half to that couch you got a courts that you've been paying off for a year).

let's hope, like I said with the last post, that this gets carried through properly. Ambitious to hope for a concrete outcome by next year but let's see how they do.

They, after all, have our future in their hands. Let's just hope they teach them to put their money where their mouth is, while keeping a little but aside too.