Collaborative Curriculum Design in the Context of Financial Literacy Education

Boukje Compen,Wouter Schelfhout

doi:10.3390/jrfm14060234

Boukje Compen, Wouter Schelfhout

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm14060234

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Abstract

Financial literacy education is being integrated into school curricula at an increasing frequency. However, the majority of teachers lack the required competencies and teacher self-efficacy to effectively teach financial topics. In this study, we evaluated whether participation in teacher design teams (TDTs) results in high-quality educational materials, encouragement of professional learning, and ultimately, enhanced teacher self-efficacy in the face of pending curriculum reform. We conducted an exploratory multiple-case study in Flanders, Belgium. Data were collected from two TDTs that developed materials aligning with the financial literacy learning standards. We observed the team meetings and conducted interviews with the participating teachers and the team coach. Our results suggest that participation in TDTs supports the three outcome variables that we examined. However, they also revealed that each outcome shows room for improvement. Furthermore, the data provided additional evidence for the importance of meeting several input and process factors that had been previously shown to be essential for effective TDT function.

Highlights

The integration of financial literacy assessment in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) raised interest among journalists and researchers alike (Schuhen and Schürkmann 2014)
The present study contributes to this literature by evaluating the impact of teacher participation in a teacher design team (TDT), which is a particular type of professional learning community (PLC) wherein the collaborative design of learning materials is central
The TDTs we examined were supported by the same team coach, a pedagogical expert employed at Onderwijsvereniging van Steden en Gemeenten (OVSG)

Summary

Introduction

The integration of financial literacy assessment in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) raised interest among journalists and researchers alike (Schuhen and Schürkmann 2014). Offering financial literacy education programmes through the school system enables schools to reach all of the students in a particular cohort (Lührmann et al 2015) and target them at an age at which they tend to be open to attitudinal and behavioural changes (Van Campenhout et al 2017). For these initiatives to be effective, it is essential that the teachers who provide financial literacy education be sufficiently knowledgeable, but they must feel confident in their teaching capabilities (Totenhagen et al 2015). The present study contributes to this literature by evaluating the impact of teacher participation in a teacher design team (TDT), which is a particular type of professional learning community (PLC) wherein the collaborative design of learning materials is central

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