Financial literacy is getting worse — here’s what you can do

The recent P-Fin Index report for 2023 reveals an alarming truth: financial literacy is getting worse.

In fact, financial literacy is at its lowest point since 2017, with only 48% of American adults able to answer just half of personal finance questions correctly. In other words, over 1 in 2 Americans get a failing grade for financial literacy.

Counterintuitively, this decline in financial literacy has actually coincided with an increased emphasis on financial education. So what’s going wrong? If our focus on and investment in financial literacy programs is increasing, why is it not only failing to meaningfully improve but instead getting worse?

While external factors like the pandemic, potential banking crisis, or imminent recession certainly have an effect, it’s critical to analyze the education itself too. Given the time and money invested into these programs, not to mention their impact on members, it’s mission-critical to ensure they’re effective.

And the truth is, we think most are not.

That’s why Zogo has reimagined financial literacy tools that are proven to really work.

Reinventing education

Built by Gen Z-ers, Zogo’s founders realized the education tools on the market weren’t working for their generation. The PowerPoints, dense web pages, and even print-handouts they’d received were unengaging and quickly forgotten. Instead, they and their peers were enraptured by digital natives’ favorite tool: their phones.

By creating a mobile-first education app — which makes learning more engaging and accessible for all generations — other innovative approaches like gamification and rewards are naturally threaded in to create a more effective learning experience.

But the team didn’t stop at shifting to a smartphone-centric strategy, they continued to curate the best strategies in education and technology to be the most effective financial literacy program available — for individuals and credit unions alike.

Ensuring effectiveness

In addition to adopting tech-savvy strategies, Zogo leverages learning science and behavioral science techniques to ensure its education yields long-term knowledge retention, increased confidence, and real-life improvement.

Principles like microlearning and the testing effect are implemented into Zogo’s one-of-a-kind curriculum to make financial topics easy to understand and remember. The education app also utilizes pre- and post-tests to ensure learners’ knowledge is growing and improving with each lesson and overall. In fact, 95% of Zogo users report increased financial confidence from using the app.

Connecting with credit unions

Financial literacy doesn’t live in a vacuum. It’s not about passing a test, but about changing the quality of the lives in your community. While Zogo’s education system is proven to improve financial knowledge and confidence, we need our credit union partners to help us improve financial wellness and behavior holistically.

By working with community-driven organizations like credit unions, and incentivizing members to not only learn new skills but put them into financial action, we can make a significant and lasting impact in improving people’s financial well-being. And, as an added bonus, financially literate members are often more loyal and active credit union members.

Want to make a real impact? Contact the team through the form below or request a demo to learn how our education can work for you.