Paulo Freire’s Critical Pedagogy as a Foundation for a Reimagined Approach to Financial Education’s Citizenship – A Practitioner’s Guide

Abstract

More macro in scope than financial literacy or financial capacity, financial citizenship is centered on democratizing and enhancing the availability and utility of financial goods and services, knowledge, and experience for the betterment of the larger community. It is centered on providing informed access to goods and services (i.e., financial capacity), knowledge, and experience, through political, societal, and business means to improve the global community’s quality of economic life.  Financial citizenship suggests that through the learning embedded in financial literacy (i.e., investment, debt, cash, etc. management) and the access achieved via financial capacity (i.e., access to products and services), individuals are equipped and empowered with the knowledge, confidence, and experience necessary to make informed, wealth enhancing decisions.

The seminal works of Freire, Mezirow, Gruenewald, and Rogers combine to address behavioral shortcomings in financial decision-making and focus on a pedagogy advancing a differentiated curriculum and instructional approach to financial citizenship. An experiential seminar emphasizing the curriculum centered on financial citizenship is developed.

Keywords: Freire Critical Pedagogy; Mezirow Transformative Learning; Gruenewald Critical Pedagogy of Place; Rogers Empathy; Financial Citizenship; Financial Education

DOI: 10.7176/JEP/15-2-11

Publication date: February 28th 2024