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DELAWARE

GRADE

C

SUMMARY OF GRADE

  • Significant Accomplishments: K-12 financial literacy standards by grade bands; State financial literacy taskforce
     

  • Needs Improvement: Needs to require high school stand-alone personal finance course and implement grade-specific K-8 financial literacy standards

AN IN-DEPTH LOOK

  • Delaware does not mandate the completion of a personal finance course for high school graduation. However, recent efforts have been made to integrate financial literacy into K-12 curriculum. 2015 Delaware House Joint Resolution No. 4 established a taskforce “to study and make findings and recommendations concerning financial literacy programs and standards, with the intent of developing a regulatory framework that will strengthen financial literacy education in K-12.” The taskforce developed K-12 academic standards in conjunction with the Delaware Department of Education which were approved by the Delaware Board of Education in January 2018. Four standards (Financial Planning and Decision Making; Money Management; Saving and Investing; Risk Protection) are each covered in Grades K-12, broken into K-3, 4-5, 6-8, and 9-12 bands.  According to the Delaware Department of Education website in 2019, “a timeline for implementation of these standards will be forthcoming once feedback from districts/schools have been collected.” A representative from the Delaware Department of Education shared that districts were initially expected to implement their locally adopted curricula and programs of study in the 2020-21 school year, but the pandemic altered this timeline and districts/charters are expected to begin implementation in the next school year.
     

  • In support of these standards, the Delaware Department of Education works with the University of Delaware’s Center for Economic Education & Entrepreneurship (CEEE) “to develop training for teachers, curriculum resources, and models of implementation.” The CEEE has a number of programs, such as Bank at School, that support the financial literacy education of elementary and secondary students. There is also a calendar of events pertaining to financial literacy.

    Delaware receives a “C” for ensuring K-12 financial literacy instruction through its financial literacy standards in grade bands, but not through a high school stand-alone personal finance course. In order to receive an “A,” Delaware must implement grade-specific K-12 financial literacy standards for all students and add a stand-alone personal finance course requirement.

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