Financial Game As Effective Development Form Of Financial Literacy Course

Abstract

The article is devoted to the issues of mastering the course of financial literacy by students of general educational institutions (on the example of educational institutions of the Novgorod region, Russian Federation). Official statistics and the results of surveys conducted by the authors of the target population group allowed us to conclude that the level of financial literacy in Russia is not high enough in comparison with the leading European countries. The authors proposed a new form of acquiring knowledge and skills in the field of finance - through conducting a financial game, based on the results of the analysis of the existing teaching methods and programs of the financial literacy course in Russia. Its effectiveness has been confirmed in practice: the results of entrance and exit testing of participants and survey data are presented. The article provides a brief description of the rules of the proposed financial game, its basic concept. The authors have determined the optimal conditions for the educational environment of the institution for the financial game, but at the same time, they have proposed options for optimization for the specific capabilities of the general education institution. Particular attention is paid to those aspects of the game, thanks to which the participants acquire the key knowledge and skills necessary for the successful mastering of the course. In addition, recommendations are proposed for the conduct of the game in organizations for the recreation of children and their recovery, in organizations for orphans and children left without parental care.

Keywords: Educational environmenteducational processfinancefinancial gamefinancial literacy

Introduction

In the modern world, education is faced with the most important task - to provide students with relevant knowledge and skills, including those that can become a sufficient basis for self-education in the future. This is necessary, since human life is constantly changing, which is largely due to the emergence of new technologies. If we turn to statistical data, we can note the rather low levels of digital, financial and legal literacy of the population of Russia in comparison with the leading countries of Europe (Bongini et al., 2018). For example, the financial literacy index of the Russian population is 12.12 points out of 21, and good knowledge in the field of finance is mainly shown by the population over the age of 30 (Medved, 2018). One of the mechanisms for increasing these indicators is the introduction of new subjects into the curricula of general education institutions. In addition, it implements an important principle of modern quality education - compliance with the challenges of society.

Nowadays, financial literacy is not limited only to a person's ability to keep track of their income and expenses. Financial literacy is a set of knowledge, competencies of a person and attitudes in the field of financial behavior, which allow improving financial situation and the quality of life. In addition, the degree to which they understand terms and events in the sphere of finance depends on the level of financial literacy of a person.

A high level of financial literacy of a person presupposes the ability to effectively manage personal finances not only in the short term, but also in the long term, taking into account the changes taking place in the world in general and in the state in particular. Thus, teaching the basics of financial literacy should provide an opportunity for students to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for later life.

Problem Statement

A course in financial literacy has been taught since 2016 in educational institutions of Russia. The course program was developed by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (since 2018, the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation) together with the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. Weeks of financial literacy, championships and olympiads in financial literacy are held for students of general education institutions, as well as for students of higher educational institutions as part of the implementation of this joint project; educational materials are regularly published. These measures are included in the Strategy for Improving Financial Literacy in the Russian Federation for 2017-2023, which was approved by the Order of the Government of the Russian Federation dated September 25, 2017 No. 2039-r. (Order of the Government of the Russian Federation, 2017).

Research Questions

The main questions formulated in the work and acting as research objectives are the following:

3.1. Identification of factors that impede the most effective development of the financial literacy course by students of educational institutions

3.2. Identification of factors that impede the most effective development of the financial literacy course by students of educational institutions

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study is to propose a form of mastering the course of financial literacy for educational institutions, which will improve the efficiency of the process of mastering the course, minimizing the possible influence of the above factors.

Research Methods

An experiment was carried out in a general educational institution of the Novgorod region to confirm the hypothesis that in order to increase the efficiency of mastering the course of financial literacy, it is most expedient to organize the educational process in the form of a game. It was attended by students of the 10th grade (52 people) and the administration of a general educational institution.

The experiment took place in several stages. Initially, students were tested on financial literacy. The topics, knowledge of which was tested in the tests, coincided at the beginning and at the end of the experiment to obtain reliable information. Then a financial game was organized for the students, which took place during the week. The topics the game was aimed at corresponded to the topics the knowledge of which was tested by tests. After the final testing, the process of collecting feedback from the participants of the experiment was organized; the mechanisms were analyzed for adapting the game for conducting in other institutions.

Findings

Of course, it is important to note that the existence of this problem is not due to the lack of high-quality methodological and reference materials or the lack of formation of an educational environment functioning effectively, but a number of other reasons, which will be considered below. The conducted research in the Novgorod region made it possible to identify the following factors that hinder the most effective development of the financial literacy course by students of general education institutions.

Firstly, as mentioned earlier, the financial literacy course was introduced into the curriculum of general educational institutions not so long ago, therefore, many consider it a less important subject than others. The time allotted for mastering the course by high school students is used for additional lessons in preparation for the Unified State Exam (for grades 10 and 11) or for the General State Exam (for grades 9).

Secondly, one of the factors reducing the effectiveness of course development is the insufficient competence of teachers. This problem is especially relevant for educational institutions in districts where there is a shortage of teaching staff (Rubtsova & Sycheva, 2018). Teaching a course in financial literacy presupposes knowledge of modern trends, constant monitoring of changes taking place in society, broadcasting successful experience. All this makes high demands on the competencies and knowledge of the teacher who can teach the course (Gurov & Khamzina, 2019).

Thirdly, the effective development of the financial literacy course is hindered by the personal disinterest of students, which is most often due to the standard organization of the educational process (Fedorova, 2017). It is impossible to realize one of the main goals of introducing a financial literacy course into the program - the acquisition of the most important knowledge and competencies by students for a successful existence in the modern world with this approach.

If we consider the generally accepted organization of the process of mastering the course of financial literacy, then it should be noted that the theory prevails over practice, which basically boils down to solving problems on the topics covered by the course (Tolkacheva, 2019). Most students cannot immediately apply knowledge in real life, and solving problems does not allow them to form the competencies they need in the future, without which it is difficult to master new and correspond to changes. In other words, students do not gain personal experience; they do not form their own attitudes of financial behavior. An experiment carried out in one of the educational institutions of the Novgorod region made it possible to confirm the hypothesis: the educational process should be organized in the form of a game in order to increase the efficiency of mastering the course of financial literacy. In addition, the effectiveness of this form does not decrease as a result of the action of factors that negatively affect the development of the course in the standard form, which fully corresponds to the purpose of the study. Further, the results of the experiment will be presented, which will justify this conclusion and a description of the concept of the proposed financial game.

Conclusion

Carrying out a financial game in a general education institution made it possible to increase the efficiency of the process of mastering the financial literacy course. The obtained result is fully consistent with the purpose of the study, since the effectiveness of the financial game does not decrease under the influence of the factors established earlier.

First, the administration of the general education institution is involved in the financial game, which controls the process. This eliminates the use of financial literacy class hours for other subjects.

Secondly, the financial game is conducted according to the proposed rules, which makes it possible not to impose too high requirements on the competence of the teacher, which means that this form of mastering the course becomes available to all educational institutions.

Thirdly, the financial game is a non-standard form of mastering the course, which increases the involvement of students in the educational process. The experiment showed that they are interested and take an active part in the game. The results of testing on the topics of the course after the financial game confirm that the participants have acquired new knowledge and competencies in the field of finance; they have formed attitudes of financial behavior. In addition, the concept of the game involves the acquisition of key soft-skills by the participants: teamwork, leadership, communication (it is necessary to communicate with the school administration, teachers, and classmates and primary school students) (Financial Literacy Standards and Teaching Best Practices, 2020).

It is important to note that the financial game is integrated into the educational process without interfering with the study of other subjects. All interaction provided for in the game is realized during financial literacy lessons or during breaks. Some of the activities within the game refer to extracurricular activities that students have the opportunity to usefully spend.

Thus, it seems appropriate to recommend mastering the course of financial literacy in the form of a financial game. The flexible concept of the proposed game allows adapting it to the capabilities of the educational environment of the institution, while maintaining the effectiveness of the course development process.

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