A classroom scene depicting economic and financial education for students. [Generated with ChatGPT]
A classroom scene depicting economic and financial education for students. [Generated with ChatGPT]

As young people gain greater access to financial services such as mobile payments and virtual assets, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education is moving to strengthen economic and financial education in schools.

The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced Wednesday that it will run its "2026 Economic and Financial Education Job Training" program in tandem with open classroom sessions, aiming to raise students' economic and financial literacy while sharpening teachers' instructional skills.

The rapid spread of digital financial services — including mobile payments, fintech platforms and virtual assets — has exposed young people to various financial transactions at an earlier age than before. As online commerce becomes routine, calls have grown for schools to equip students with the skills to recognize and resist financial fraud and illegal financial activity.

In response, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education structured the program so that teachers do not merely acquire knowledge about economics and finance but learn to translate it into actual lesson plans for their students. The job training ran for five days from July 9 through Thursday, drawing 45 middle school teachers. The 15-hour program was held at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education and the headquarters of the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Instructors included economic and financial education specialists, current teachers, and representatives from organizations such as the Korean Tax Accountants Association and the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation. The curriculum also featured practical, field-oriented content — including case studies of school economics and finance clubs, teacher learning community activities, and the development of a course titled "Learning Economics and Finance the Easy Way."

The training covered six topics: the relationship between economic and financial education and students' daily lives; the efficient market hypothesis and value investing principles through simulation; the basics of the digital economy and finance; creative lesson design using economics and finance textbooks; understanding careers through the lens of taxation; and designing economics and finance lessons under the revised national curriculum.

Particular emphasis was placed on helping students understand how markets work, the nature of risk, and rational decision-making — rather than treating investment and finance simply as tools for building wealth. Everyday economic concepts closely tied to daily life, such as taxation and employment and the relationship between money supply and prices, are also woven into the lessons.

Yangjeong Middle School in Seoul held an open class Thursday for first-year students on the theme of money supply and prices. Students participated in a classroom auction to experience firsthand how an increase in the amount of money in circulation affects the prices of goods.

The teacher leading the open class also delivered a lecture during the job training on experiencing the efficient market hypothesis and value investing principles through simulation. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said it plans to boost the real-world application of economic and financial education by creating a structure in which teachers apply what they learned in training to actual lessons and share their experiences with colleagues.

"Economic and financial literacy is a core competency that students will need to navigate the future," an official from the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said. "By linking job training with open classes, we will build a virtuous cycle that moves from lecture to practice to classroom application."

The official added that the office "will strengthen support to ensure that school-based economic and financial education keeps pace with the AI and digital era."


brunch@heraldcorp.com