Credit scores, deductibles, and socialism, perhaps? In their financial literacy classes, Ohio politicians want high school students to understand the benefits of a free market.
Senate Bill 17 was approved by the Ohio House of Representatives on Wednesday with a 64-26 ballot. In courses that teach kids about money management, paying taxes, and another economic knowledge, the plan would require high school students to learn about 10 rules of socialism.
The free-market financial system, according to Sen. Steve Wilson, R-Maineville, “is the core of this wonderful equalizer and I believe we need to tell that to our individuals.” Wilson pushed for the shift.
Critics worry that the classes cram more into a program that is already jam-packed and was created by specialists in personal finance. The financial literacy course can be substituted for a half-unit of algebra or taken as an alternative.
Rep. Joe Miller, D-Lorain, a previous social studies instructor who taught students about capitalism’s tenets, said that this bill is “part republican message, part intellectual warfare, and part poor fix” to the Ohio financial literacy class requirement. He feared that in subsequent elections, the bill’s competitors may be referred to as communists.
In addition to 27 other financial literacy principles, Rep. Sean Brennan, D-Parma, stated that he is “totally in favor of capitalism” but worries that there isn’t enough time to teach the idea. When you can’t go in-depth, what are the kids actually going to learn?
However, Rep. Adam Bird, R-New Richmond, stated that the new lessons are a crucial addition to the education and that “this is something that our kids need.”
Others expressed worry that the proposed legislation provides an extremely simplistic view of socialism.
According to Cynthia Peeples, chairman of Honesty for Ohio Education, the president’s basic talking points about capitalism “fail to solve its complications, negative impacts, natural inequities, or the historical and modern exploitation and enslavement of adults and children used to power the free-market engine.”
Additionally, the costs enables students to skip the financial literacy course after completing Advanced Placement macroeconomics or micro economics. The alternative, according to those who oppose the change, leaves those students ready to manage their personal and household finances.
Before the invoice is sent to Ohio Governor, the Ohio Senate must approve any adjustments. DeWine, Mike
The Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal, and 18 other partnered news organizations in Ohio are served by the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which employs Jessie Balmert as a writer.