There are calls for financial literacy to be included in the national curriculum with research showing navigating money is one of the biggest worries for young people. One school in Queensland has the subject at the heart of its teaching and says it's led to a huge increase in the number of school leavers prioritising study and work.
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00:00Logan Lee State High School in South East Queensland takes a different approach to learning.
00:07Its small farm is the centrepiece of a move to put wellbeing and financial literacy at the heart of its teaching.
00:15The traditional things that schools look for, like academic success, are underpinned by things like financial literacy.
00:22U10 students Cassie Sorensen and Alyssa Rosario say financial literacy is helping them plan for their dreams of being a teacher and paramedic.
00:31I knew that I had to save up but I didn't really know how to do it that much.
00:34A house, yes. It's terrifying that you're already thinking but you need to, yes.
00:39The lessons include running a budget, avoiding scams and bad debt and planning for the future.
00:45Definitely saving towards like university and stuff because that like is expensive and then just like as an emergency fund.
00:51So what do you think about financial literacy?
00:53Principal Kerry Shepherd credits the course and a wellbeing focus with turning around a school facing more than its share of disadvantage.
01:01That might include we have students who are refugees.
01:04Four years ago 44% of students left school without plans for study or work. Today that's down to 20%.
01:12Rather than just, you know, rolling the dice and seeing where it lands, they make deliberate decisions based on actual information, not TikTok videos.
01:19Put aside a percentage for savings for you first.
01:23Financial literacy isn't mandated in the national curriculum. Instead the school relies on a course called Cashed Up, run by a not-for-profit.
01:30One in five Australian young people are finding financial matters as one of the most stressful things in their life.
01:37They have sat hours.
01:38At Logan Lee they'd like to share their success and want financial literacy to be mandatory across the country.
01:45So what do you think about being a good point?
01:46In my opinion.
01:47You know what the reason is, that your university is in school.
01:49Opened and nobody has a good place.
01:50It's the reason is that you need to receive—
01:53You know, it's better.
01:54Oh, well, you know, that I'm in at your house, you know.
01:57But I think there's a big deal for the schools like, you know, some of the schools that are firms in the community.