Evaluating the effectiveness of an online module for increasing financial literacy

Abstract

PurposeFinancial literacy is lacking across all age groups, but less than one-third of young adults have even basic financial knowledge. Research has demonstrated that online learning is effective. As such, online learning strategies may be a useful tool for improving the financial literacy of high school students. The paper aims to discuss this issue.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses student-level (N=3,061) and school-level data (n=100) to examine the effectiveness of Soar to Savings, an online learning module that teaches key personal finance and economics concepts.FindingsThe findings show large, positive, and statistically significant gains in learning from pretest to posttest for the student-level and school-level samples.Originality/valueThe results provide evidence that Soar to Savings is an effective tool for increasing financial knowledge.