I’m sure you’ve heard the term “experiential learning”—or “learning by doing” at some point. Basically, what happens when you give students the opportunity to learn a new skill by trying it. It’s a common theme when learning a new sport, but does the same method work in the classroom?  What if we combine experiential learning with goal-setting? Lucky for us, a recent study provides an answer—at least in one very specific setting.

In Danish schools 9th graders on the “pre-vocational track” were randomly assigned to a class that either did or did not include action-centered lessons from SaveWise. There’s a lot in that sentence to unpack! Let’s get into the context. 9th grade in the Danish setting means 15-year-olds; the pre-vocational track is traditionally the most economically vulnerable population. In the Netherlands, this is the age where youth start to take on some financial responsibilities, such as part-time jobs and developing habits to drive everyday financial behaviors. 

What does the SaveWise program look like? It’s 8-weeks long, with 50 minutes per week, and everything is focused on “doing” instead of cognitive learning. Here are some summary points: 

• Students choose something to save for that is personally significant and challenging to save for. They also reinforce the goal by specifying in advance what amount should be saved each week or month. Peers and teachers track the progress on this saving goal. 
• Students visualize dreams to help them say committed to their goals. 
• The class does hands-on activities alongside animated instructional videos to generate positive attitudes around money. 
• There are NO prevention-oriented goals allowed (e.g., “don’t get into debt”).
• Parent and peer involvement exist via take-home assignments. 
• Students are taught to identify and avoid small expenses (e.g., bottled water) in order to save.

The good news: Students completing SaveWise had higher financial literacy scores two months after the program, despite the fact that it wasn’t focused on knowledge at all. Oddly, it didn’t affect any attitudes towards money, though that was a direct component of the education. 

Students completing SaveWise were more likely to report having an intention to save more, spend less, and earn an income. They also reported actually saving more and improving financial behaviors two months after the lessons. 

The unfortunate news: All the effects of the program disappear six months after its completion with one exception: students are more likely to partake in financial socialization with family and peers. 

What does this tell us about experiential learning? Two possibilities come to mind right away. First, action-based learning may need to be paired with more traditional personal finance education. Without knowing where to find follow-up information, continuing habits may be challenging. Perhaps action-based learning needs to include more follow-up and accountability. There was so much tracking during the program, ending that period of being “watched” may remove all behavior changes. 

Second, given the specific population of study—pre-vocational students from socio-economically vulnerable groups—the education many not have been enough. For example, maybe even more action-based information on how to find part-time jobs could have helped these students to thrive.

Regardless, we need more research on which types of programs are most influential for which populations. 

About the Author

Carly Urban

Dr. Carly Urban is Associate Professor of Economics at Montana State University, a Research Fellow at the Institute for Labor Economics (IZA), and a research fellow at the TIAA Institute. She has a full page on her website dedicated to financial education research (https://www.carlyurban.com/home/financial-education), where most of her work has been centered on financial education in schools. This research has been published in top academic journals and covered by major news outlets. When she is not working, she usually spends her time adventuring in the mountains with her husband or her dogs, Cannon and Panda.