A Blogs@Baruch sitePosts RSS Comments RSS

Teacher Absent

I was looking forward to teaching a class on investments today, but the teacher was not in. Security wouldn’t let us by without his permission. We have postponed the class till next week, which in some way is great because it gives me more time to prepare. In the slide, the material provides that investments are assets individuals buy to sell at a later point for profit. Why that is true, I also think it is important to touch upon why we invest in the first place. It is really intricately tied to savings. Onwards till next week!

Comments Off on Teacher Absent

Credit- What is it?

Today was my second time teaching at Washington Irving High School. Before the class started, we had students walking in and walking right out of the classroom. I heard one student say “Oh, today is Wednesday. I forgot,” and did not sound happy to be there- I didn’t think we were that boring last Wednesday. When the bell rang, we started discussing credit. As the class went some students seemed to become more interested and asked questions while others had their eyes half-opened and close to falling asleep. I spoke about the important credit terms and the important things to look for when opening a credit card- low APR, no annual fee, high and competitive rewards and longer grace period. I stressed about the low minimum balance and that even though it looks appealing at first, in the end you end up paying a lot more than you borrowed. When I signed up for Cents Ability, I was nervous about keeping the students engaged and I think that we are doing a better job than I expected. Hopefully, in the upcoming lessons we can make everyone enthusiastic about Finance, even the students who were half-asleep today.

One response so far

First Day at Washington Irving High School

My first day at Washington Irving High School was enjoyable. Before entering the classroom, I was nervous about teaching to high school students and unaware of what to expect. I was afraid that no one would participate and the class would be dull, but as soon as we started we had a student named Luis participate and then followed Vicky, Mike and Mario. I spoke about SMART goals and then gave out worksheets. The students had to write down their goals and fill in the S-M-A-R-T parts of their goal [specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic, and time-bound.] We all went around helping them fill in the information and asked questions about school and their future aspirations. Some dream about traveling around the world while others dream about going to college, buying a car or buying a house. Overall, my experience at Washington Irving High School turned out great for the first day and it was rewarding. Can’t wait until next week!

Comments Off on First Day at Washington Irving High School

Getting into Credit

Today at Washington Irving High School the energy was a little different. It was my second time presenting for Cents Ability. I had no nerves and the children were receptive. Before the class started, I saw two students poke their head in the classroom. When they didn’t see their teacher they turned around and left. Although I wish they had come, the experience made me nostalgic about high school.  But if I wanted to skip a class, I would certainly not look first and then turn away. It was pretty bold.  For this week’s class, I spoke about credit. I think it is a critical topic in light of what is going on in our economy.  I spent a lot of time focusing on a famous Benjamin Franklin quote, “Remember that credit is money.” While this statement is somewhat correct, it is a little contradictory. I had the class talk about this contradiction and explore what credit actually is in comparison to the money we make. The material required that I speak about the specifics of credit cards, student loans and mortgages. While it is important to understand these concepts, I also believe that it is important to relate them to our personal financial decisions. For example: I get in and decide I want to go to Harvard. I have no money to pay for college so I need to take out a loan to pay for my tuition. If Harvard costs on average $60,000 a year and I plan on attending four years I would have to take out a $240,000 loan. The real question you should ask yourself is not how to take out that loan, but if that financial burden is worth it. I personally think it would not be worth the aggravation later. I left that decision to the students. One boy said he was interested in going to Stony Brook for college and we spoke about the costs and the alternative options he had. I think raising these types of discussions rather than going into the specifics about loan agreements might be more important at this stage of the game.

11 responses so far

First Time’s a Charm

If I had one word to describe my first Centsability experience it would be, “fun,” which is not the word I originally thought I would come out thinking. What was so fun about teaching financial literacy to high school students? For starters, the classroom was small and intimate. As my first teaching experience, I felt comfortable in a smaller classroom. There were just enough students to feel a little intimidated, but not paralyzed by nerves. The teacher, Chris Ahern, was also really nice and welcoming. In so much, I felt pumped to present my material rather than unenthused. I presented a small portion on savings, in which I spoke about why we need to save and the importance of goal savings. Although I did follow the Centsability material, I must admit I ad-libbed a lot. I threw in some questions and tried to get the class more involved. My favorite point I spoke about related to savings and future expectations. I once read that it costs $250,000 before the expense of college to raise a child in New York. If that’s not a reason to save, I don’t know what is. While I’m sure I didn’t dramatically impact their lives, I think the students were somewhat receptive to my presentation. Now I have to follow my own advice about savings. Looking forward to next week.

Comments Off on First Time’s a Charm

« Prev