Parents fret over kids’ financial literacy in our cashless society

With most Queensland parents concerned about their children’s appreciation of money, a program for students aims to drive it home.

Parents are stressed an increasingly cashless society is making it hard for teenagers to learn the real value of money.

A recent survey conducted by the Financial Basics Foundation found over two-thirds of Queensland parents with 13 to 18-year-olds were concerned about their children’s appreciation of money.

A similar number were worried about the impact the Covid-19 pandemic would have on their children’s financial future.

Financial Basics Foundation chief executive Katrina Samios said nearly one in five Queensland teens were learning about money and investing from the internet or social media, with less than 12 per cent learning about personal finance at school.

“The Financial Basics Foundation provides free financial literacy teaching resources to Australian secondary schools and we have been calling for some time now for financial literacy to be approached in a more systematic and consistent way within schools,” she said.

“Many young people leave school and start working with no real education about how to handle the money they are being paid.”

Springfield Anglican College Year 11 student Abigail Lowden with a fistful of dollars. Picture: Richard Walker

The foundation has partnered with Suncorp for this year’s Suncorp ESSI Money Challenge, a free online financial literacy competition for high school students, which launches today.

Kids have the change to win up to $1500 for themselves and their school, with more than 21,000 teens taking part in the past five years.

One of those set to compete is Springfield Anglican College student Abigail Lowden, 16, who said she rarely carried physical cash.

Instead she uses her phone to swipe and pay, and admitted she was sometimes surprised at how much she had spent on Uber eats or takeaway food when she checked her month statements.

While she is confident she is well across her finances, Abigail was looking forward to taking part in the challenge, to see just how much she knows.

“I am a bit of a saver,” Abigail said.

“When I started my part-time job I had to set up bank accounts and things like that with the help of my parents.

“I’m hoping through the ESSI Money challenge, I’ll get a better understanding around how to budget for costs in the future for things like everyday expenses.”

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