Schools projects

We support the development of quality financial education resources in schools and professional development for teachers. This page outlines our current and recent projects.

Financial Literacy in Schools Advisory Group

The Commission has set up a Financial Literacy in Schools Advisory Group. The key tasks of this group are to:

  • Promote financial literacy in schools and school communities
  • Act as an expert group
  • Respond to issues relating to the promotion and dissemination of good practice examples.

The group consists of practising teachers, heads of department, senior teachers, school principals and teacher union representatives.

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Contributing to development of resources

We support the Ministry of Education to implement financial education in classrooms by contributing to new resource development for the delivery of financial literacy within the New Zealand curriculum. This includes the creation of classroom resources and professional development training to upskill teachers. 

Teaching resources for years 1 to 10 are available at the website New Zealand Curriculum Online - see Financial capability in the curriculum.

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Assessing financial literacy of high school students

The Commission is works with the OECD in assessing the financial literacy of New Zealand high school students through the Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA).

In 2012 financial literacy was included in this global comparative assessment for the first time. Fifteen-year-old students in 65 member countries were tested in financial literacy along with traditional subjects like English, maths and science. See the results of the 2012 data collection.

For more details, see OECD Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA).

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Development of a guide to evaluating financial education

The Retirement Commissioner represents New Zealand in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) International Network on Financial Education (INFE), which has 97 member countries. 

See OECD INFE High-Level Principles for the Evaluation of Financial Education Programmes on the OECD website.

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