Students’ financial literacy: 

results from PISA 2015

Wednesday 24 May 2017

Financial Literacy and Education 

Commission

Washington DC

Andreas SCHLEICHER
Globalisation and digital technologies have made financial products 

and services more widely accessible but also more challenging

• More challenging financial choices

– The spread of digital financial services opens up new opportunities for 

financially excluded people to access the formal financial system...

– but also exposes consumers to new security threats and risks of fraud that 

are compounded when low financial literacy is combined with poor digital 

skills and low cyber security awareness 

• More financial risks

– Increased life expectancy, less welfare protection, more “individualized” 

pensions, and more uncertain economic and job prospects due to 

digitalization, technological change, globalization 

• Growing inequality
Financial education is a complement 

to financial consumer protection, inclusion and regulation

• More challenging financial choices

– The spread of digital financial services opens up new opportunities for 

financially excluded people to access the formal financial system...

– but also exposes consumers to new security threats and risks of fraud that 

are compounded when low financial literacy is combined with poor digital 

skills and low cyber security awareness 

• More financial risks

– Increased life expectancy, less welfare protection, more “individualised” 

pensions, and more uncertain economic and job prospects due to 

digitalisation, technological change, globalisation

• Growing inequality

Financial 

literacy

Consumer 

protection and 

regulation
Knowledge and understanding of financial 

concepts and risks...

...and the skills, motivation and confidence to 

apply such knowledge and understanding...

...in order to make effective decisions across 

a range of financial contexts, to improve the 

financial well-being of individuals and 

society, and to enable participation in 

economic life

Financial literacy in PISA
What does financial literacy mean for the lives of 15-year-olds?

•...if they go to the cinema, will they still have enough money for the bus 

fare home? Or would it be better to buy pizza and invite friends home? 

Balance their priority and plan 

what to spend money on

•...a games console will need new games, a motorbike will need fuel, tyres 

and services

Remember that some of the 

purchases have ongoing costs 

• ...Some emails that look like they came from their bank might not be 

legitimate, they should know what to do if they are not sure

Being alert 

to possible fraud 

•...If their phone gets stolen, they should ask their parents if it is covered 

by their household insurance

Knowing what risk is and what 

insurance is meant for 

•...they should know that if they buy a computer on credit they will have 

to pay interest on the loan, on top of the advertised price for the 

compute

Make an informed decision 

about credit
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Italy

Spain

United States

Canadian provinces

Chile

Australia

OECD average-10

Slovak Republic

Russia

Lithuania

Poland

B-S-J-G (China)

Netherlands

Belgium (Flemish)

% 

Working outside school hours (e.g. a holiday job, part-time work)

Working in a family business

Occasional informal jobs (e.g. baby-sitting or gardening)

Any work activity (working outside school hours and/or working in a family business and/or occasional informal jobs)

Some 64% of students earn money 

from some formal or informal work activity

Table IV.5.15

Percentage of students who receive money from:
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Chile

Poland

Russia

Italy

Lithuania

Slovak Republic

B-S-J-G (China)

Spain

United States

OECD average-10

Belgium (Flemish)

Canadian provinces

Australia

Netherlands

% 

Students holding a bank account

Students holding a bank account who perform below proficiency Level 4

Often two out of three of the students who hold a bank 

account do not have the skills to manage such an account

Table IV.5.13b

At Level 4, students can 

apply their understanding of 

complex financial concepts, 

interpret and evaluate 

financial documents such as 

a bank statement, and make 

financial decisions taking into 

account longer-term 

consequences, such as 

understanding the overall 

cost implication of paying 

back a loan

Students who have a bank 

account but do not reach 

proficiency Level 4
• Percentage of students in Australia at bachelor’s, 

master’s or doctoral levels who had a public 

student loan in 2013/14

79%

• Percentage of bachelor’s-degree students in the 

United States who had a public student loan in 

2013/14

62%

• Average amount of debt students graduate with 

in the Netherlands

USD 

18 000

• Average amount of debt students graduate with in 

Canada

USD 

12 000

In some countries, students nearing the end of compulsory 

education will soon decide whether to take a student loan

Source: Education at a Glance 2016

0 20 40 60 80 100

Australia

United States

Netherlands

Participating

Canadian

provinces

%

Percentage of 15-year-old students 

who perform at Level 4 and above 
B-S-J-G (China)

Belgium (Flemish)

Canadian 

provinces

Russia Netherlands

Australia

United States Poland

Italy

Spain

Lithuania Slovak Republic

Chile

Peru

Brazil

380

400

420

440

460

480

500

520

540

560

Mean performance in financial literacy 580

Mean financial 

literachy score

Figure IV.3.2

-30

-20

-10

0

10

20

30

Russia

Italy

United States

Belgium (Flemish)

OECD average-7

Spain

Slovak Republic

Australia

Poland

Three-year 

score-point 

difference

Change between 2012 and 2015
420

440

460

480

500

520

Students who discuss

money matters more

often with friends than

with parents

Students who discuss

money matters equally

often with parents and

friends

Students who discuss

money matters more

often with parents than

with friends

Score points

Relationships matter: 

Financial literacy, family and friends (after accounting for social background)

Figure IV.5.2
300

350

400

450

500

550

600

650

Chile 103

Brazil 78

Peru 117

Slovak Republic 80

Lithuania 71

Spain 79

United States 97

OECD average-10 89

Italy 60

Poland 73

Australia 107

Netherlands 104

Belgium (Flemish) 110

Russia 46

Canadian provinces 77

B-S-J-G (China) 132

Score points

Wealthiest quarter (ESCS)

Third quarter

Second quarter

Poorest quarter

Difference 

between students 

in the top quarter 

and students in 

the bottom 

quarter of this 

index

Socio-economically advantaged students score 89 points higher 

in financial literacy than disadvantaged students, on average 

across the OECD, equivalent to almost three school years

Table IV.4.11

Mean score, by quarters of the PISA index of economic, social and cultural status (ESCS)

In math 15-year-old 

Americans rank 30th out 

of 35 OECD countries
Financial literacy skills is more than reading and math

-40

-30

-20

-10

0

10

20

30

40

Lithuania

Spain

Slovak Republic

Poland

Chile

Italy

OECD average-10

Netherlands

Brazil

Australia

United States

Peru

Canadian provinces

Russia

Belgium (Flemish)

B-S-J-G (China)

Score-point difference 

Students’ performance in 

financial literacy is lower

than the performance of 

students with similar scores 

in mathematics and reading 

Students’ performance in 

financial literacy is higher

than the performance of 

students with similar scores 

in mathematics and reading 

Figure IV.3.12

Difference between the actual financial literacy score and the score predicted by students’ 

performance in mathematics and reading 

Highest performing 

countries/economies 
Learning by doing

Students develop financial and economic understanding, skills and 

habits not only through talking to parents and observing their 

behaviour, but also via personal experiences and learning by doing
On average, students who hold a bank account perform better in 

financial literacy than students of similar socio-economic status 

who do not have a bank account

Figure IV.5.5

-20

0

20

40

60

80

100

Slovak Republic

Russia

Lithuania

Poland

B-S-J-G (China)

Chile

United States

OECD average-10

Italy

Belgium (Flemish)

Australia

Spain

Canadian provinces

Netherlands

Score-point difference

After accounting for socio-economic status Before accounting for socio-economic status

Difference between students who have a bank account and students who do not 
• Boys are more likely than girls to be involved in regular work 

activities, and to receive money in exchange for work, while girls in 

some countries and economies are more likely than boys to receive 

money in the form of allowances or gifts

• Socio-economically advantaged students are more likely to receive 

money from occasional informal jobs, such as babysitting or 

gardening, and from gifts than disadvantaged students. 

Disadvantaged students are more likely to earn money by working 

outside of school hours than advantaged students

Other findings
1.00

1.50

2.00

2.50

3.00

3.50

Try to borrow money

from a family

member

Try to borrow money

from a friend

Save up to buy it Not buy it

Odds ratio

Level 2 or 3 Level 4 or 5

Students' financial literacy is associated with understanding 

the value of saving (after accounting for math and reading and social background)

Figure IV.6.2

High performing students are 

more than three times as likely 

as low-performing students in 

financial literacy to choose the 

statement "Save up to buy it" 

rather than "Buy it with money 

that really should be used for 

something else“, after 

accounting for performance in 

mathematics and reading and 

other characteristics.
Financial literacy and student motivation

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

I want to be able to

select from among the

best opportunities

available when I

graduate

I want top grades in

most or all of my courses

I see myself as an

ambitious person

I want to be one of the

best students in my class

I want to be the best,

whatever I do

Score-point difference

Before accounting for performance in other domains

After accounting for performance in mathematics and reading
Financial 

literacy 

skills for 

all 

students 

Address the 

needs of lowperforming 

students 

Tackle socioeconomic 

inequalities 

early on 

Provide equal 

opportunities for 

learning to boys 

and girls 

Help students 

make the most of 

available learning 

opportunities at 

school 

Target parents at 

the same time as 

young people 

Provide young 

people with safe 

opportunities to 

learn by experience 

outside of school 

Evaluate the 

impact of 

initiatives in 

and outside of 

school 

A multifaceted policy agenda 
• Over 50 countries have or are developing a financial 

education strategy that...

– recognizes the importance of financial education – including 

possibly through legislation – and defines its meaning and scope

– involves the co-operation of different stakeholders as well as the 

identification of a coordinating body

– establishes a roadmap to achieve specific and predetermined 

objectives within a set period of time

– provides guidance for individual programmes in order to efficiently 

and appropriately contribute to the national strategy

National strategies for financial education
• Several countries started introducing financial literacy 

elements in the school curriculum into existing subjects, 

built teacher capabilities and developed instructional 

materials 

• Some examples for evaluating financial education in 

school (Brazil, Italy, Spain, US)

Initiatives in school 
• Videos, competitions, interactive tools, events (money 

weeks, savings day), museums, serious games

...complementary to school initiatives

...can reach out-of-school young people 

... participation of non-profits and private sector can bring 

resources, but also up-to-date experience on financial issues

...needs to be integrated in national strategies

Out of school initiatives
Find out more about our work at www.oecd.org/pisa

– All publications

– The complete micro-level database

Email: Andreas.Schleicher@OECD.org

Twitter: SchleicherOECD

Wechat: AndreasSchleicher

Thank you