Australia’s government in August announced plans to fund a national financial-literacy course for students at its public chools that will teach the basics of money-management and how to evaluate credit card offers.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says the government will spend AU$10 million (US$8.9 million or 7 million euros) to launch the program, which Australia’s central bank will help to administer.
The plan calls for training 6,000 teachers to teach financial-literacy classes, with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission providing direct instruction for teachers.
In addition to money-management, the course will teach students how to understand the details of loans, interest rates, credit card reward schemes and mobile-phone plans.
The central bank says its data show that more than 30% of young adults ages 18 to 24 in Australia have at least one credit card.
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