1. The FSC Financial
Education
Schools
Programme -
2015
Melanie Kamilah Williams
Senior Legal Officer, FSC - Jamaica

2. FSC Financial Education in Schools Programme
• Successfully staged for 6 years
• Sponsored by FSC and its local partners
• Junior Achievement – instrumental in developing the FE Content,
training facilitators
• Programme has evolved with FSC’s partnership with CYFI
• Impact of the programme has been enhanced by this partnership

3. FSC and CYFI – Successful Partnership
• For the past 3 years, the FSC has partnered with CYFI and Global Money
Week
• CYFI – A global leader reaching over 36 million children
• Global Money Week – activities staged in over 118 countries, reaching
over 3 million children
• Content of FSC’s FESP tailored based on the CYFI model, using Junior
Achievement developed modules
• FSC’s FESP timed to coincide with the Global Money Week

4. Objectives of the FSC and CFYI Model
• Teach our youth and children financial life skills
• Empowering our youth and children to make smart financial decisions
• Promotion of financial inclusion by financial education
• Increase the financial capability of our youth and children
• Creation of societies with financially literate individuals
• Financially responsible youth and children – future leaders,
entrepreneurs and savvy consumers

5. Local Partners with the FSC in the programme
• Junior Achievement- Content Developer
• Jamaica Deposit Insurance Company (JDIC)
• Bank of Jamaica
• Credit Bureau
• Jamaica Stock Exchange
• Jamaica Cooperative Credit Union
• Ministry of Education; Ministry of Finance
• Media

6. Our Partners in Jamaica

7. Financial Education Content
• Value of Money
• Planning to Earn
• Saving for Life
• Budgeting
• Distinction between Investments and Savings
• Making Smart Credit Choices
• Money Management Skills
• Accessing Financial Information

8. Main Take-Aways from the FE Content
• Healthy personal finance requires planning and managing income and
expenses
• Impact of education on earning power, future employment possibilities
• Planning is critical to making strategic financial and life decisions
• Life stage financial planning – big ticket choices – education, housing etc.
• Nature of opportunity cost
• Discipline in sticking to a budget

9. Smart Financial Skills
• Selection of an educational path that gives an opportunity to earn more
• Creating a monthly budget – matching spending against limited income
• Distinction between fixed expenses and variable expenses
• Setting aside emergency funds
• Making investments
• Savings – interest, banking facilities, bank charges
• Understanding investment returns and investment risks

10. Smart Financial Skills
• Risks to personal finances
• Protecting against Identity theft
• Taking preventative steps to avoid Fraud
• Insurance – as a method of limiting losses
• Saving for retirement
• Doing research on financial products and financial institutions

11. Smart Financial Skills
• Using credit wisely
• Understanding credit-worthiness
• Appreciating the role of credit rating agencies
• Examples of extending credit
• Such as loans for higher education, mortgages, credit cards, hire
purchase
• Consequences of using credit unwisely – penalty fees, lack of access to
finance

12. Financial Regulators and Financial Services
• FSC
 Securities
 Pensions
 Insurance
• Bank of Jamaica
• Jamaica Stock Exchange
• Credit Bureau of Jamaica
• Jamaica Stock Exchange

13. Targeting the audience
• Students in Secondary Educational Facilities (High Schools)
• Average Age classification for the Students: 14 – 15 year olds
• Minimum Age of Students: 12 years
• Schools are located across a large geographic area to maximize impact
• On average between 8 – 9 schools participate
• In 2015, 8 schools participated
• 30 students for each school – 240 students in 2015

14. Identifying the Target Audience
• Students in Secondary Educational Facilities (High Schools)
• Average Age classification for the Students: 14 – 15 year olds
• Minimum Age of Students: 12 years
• Schools are located across a large geographic area to maximize impact
• On average between 8 – 9 schools participate annually
• 8 schools participated in 2015
• 30 students for each school – 240 students in 2015

15. Participating High Schools
• Ardenne
• Glenmuir
• Black River
• Denbigh
• Mannings
• Ascot
• William Knibb
• St. Jago

16. Method of Selection of Students
• Voluntary Participation of students
• Principals and Teachers encourage student participation
• FSC promotion via MOF and MOE

17. Beneficiaries of the Programme
• Immediate beneficiaries: 240 students who participated; and
their teachers
• Long term beneficiaries:
Wider school population
Parents
Employers
Universities and Tertiary Institutions
Financial Services Providers

18. The “Messengers” – The teachers of key Financial
Life Skills
• Trained Facilitators (including FSC Staff and External
Education Professionals)
• Teachers based at the Schools
• Guest Presenters

19. Method of Delivery of key concepts
• One weekly session – taught in the classroom (6 weeks)
• Sessions are focused and highly interactive
• Use visual tools; handouts and materials
• 30 minutes per session
• Utilising activities to reinforce the key messages

20. Method of Delivery of key concepts
• Site Visits
Money Museum at Bank of Jamaica
Jamaica Stock Exchange
FSC

21. Method of Delivery of Key Concepts
• Essay Competition
• Topic: “Formal Credit Reporting is new to Jamaica. What are the most
important lessons for high school students to learn about credit
reporting?”
• Logo Competition
• Visually appealing logo to be used in marketing the programme
• New initiative: The Vision Award in 2016

22. Global Money Week - 2015
• Held March 9 – 13
• One day tours of the Money Museum at BOJ; the JSE and the FSC
• Focused on Digital Currency, Mobile Banking and Electronic Platforms
for Commerce
• Special Presentation by CreditInfo Jamaica

23. Global Money Week - 2015
• Closing Awards Ceremony
• Keynote speaker: Megan Deane, CEO of CreditInfo Jamaica
• Recognition of students and teachers
• Networking skills
• Business etiquette
• Mentorship opportunities with Business Leaders
• Interaction with Financial Service Providers

24. Continued Evolution and Collaboration
• Enhanced Partnership with CYFI, Global Money Week
• IFIE – the Working Group for Americas Chapter
• MOE – developing financial education content for schools
• Strengthening relationships with Junior Achievement
• Collaboration with Regulators and Industry Leaders – BOJ, JDIC, JSE,
CreditInfo Jamaica, JCCUL, JN
• Expanding the programme to new schools

25. Impact Report
Facilitator’s communication
Effective communication
Strongly agree Agree Neither Agree nor disagree
Facilitator made subject easy to
understand
Information easy to understand
Strongly agree Agree
Neither agree nor disagree Disagree
Strongly disagree No response

26. Impact Report
Students’ perception of the
programme
Relevance of information
Strongly agree Agree Neither Agree nor disagree
Engagement of students
Programme was interesting
Strongly agree Agree
Neither agree nor disagree Disagree
Strongly disagree No response

27. Programme meeting Students’ Needs
0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00% 70.00%
Programme met students’ purpose in participating
No response Disagree Neither agree nor disagree Agree Strongly agree

28. Financial
Education for
Youth and
Children
• Special Thanks to:
• The Schools
• The Students
• Our Facilitators
• Our Local Partners
• Media
• CYFI
• Global Money Week
FSC and its local and global partners
creating exciting and impactful
Financial Education Content

29. Thank You
For further information, please
contact the FSC at:
39 – 43 Barbados Avenue, Kingston
5, Jamaica
Telephone: (876) 906-3010
Email: inquiry@fscjamaica.org
williamsmk@fscjamaica.org