Supporting financial education in schools
Delivering high-quality financial education in schools takes more than good intentions or standalone resources. It requires clear guidance, common understandings, shared expectations, and strong collaboration between schools, providers and the education system.
As part of the National Strategy for Financial Capability, we’re focused on making financial education easier to plan, deliver and sustain in schools by supporting both schools and financial education providers to work confidently and consistently together.
Working alongside financial education providers
Financial education in schools is supported by a wide range of organisations, programmes and resources. To strengthen consistency and quality across this landscape, we established a Provider Advisory Group in 2024.
The Provider Advisory Group brings together trusted financial education providers to:
- build a shared understanding of curriculum expectations and best practice
- encourage collaboration rather than duplication
- support alignment with the refreshed New Zealand Curriculum
- identify gaps, strengths and opportunities across existing provision.
Clear guidance for schools and providers
A key piece of our work has been the development of the Financial Education Implementation Guides — two complementary guides designed to support implementation from both sides of the classroom.
These guides are planning and implementation tools and provide clear links to the programmes and resources available aligned to the curriculum and age groups.
A guide for providers
The providers guide supports organisations already delivering financial education or ones looking at developing new resources and programmes to align their programmes and resources with the New Zealand Curriculum and best practice principles.
It provides:
- a shared language and framework for financial education
- guidance on curriculum alignment and progression
- clarity on how providers can work effectively with school leaders and teachers
- implementation maps showing where and how resources support learning outcomes.
A guide for schools
The schools guide supports school leaders and teachers to plan and implement financial education across Years 0–13 in a way that is age appropriate, consistent and aligned with curriculum expectations.
It helps schools to:
- understand how financial learning builds over time
- plan financial education across learning areas and year levels
- identify where external providers can add value
- choose programmes and resources that fit their students, community and context.
Importantly, the guide recognises that teachers don’t need to be financial experts. It connects pedagogical expertise with quality assured resources and support, making it easier to embed financial education within existing teaching and learning. assured resources and support, making it easier to embed financial education within existing teaching and learning.