According to Marketwatch.com the lack of financial literacy among U.S. citizens has cost upwards of $200 billion over the last twenty years. Besides racking up student loan debt that averaged about $37,172 per student in 2016 (Marketwatch.com) millennials and those in Generation Z are also the most likely to engage in risky financial behaviors like payday loans, pawnshops and tax refund advances (PwC, 2016; Mottolla, 2014). Being financially vulnerable as young adults compounded with today’s increasingly complex financial environment (Batty et al., 2015), make fertile ground for mistakes that have lifelong impact.
Over the last 20 years, much has been done to better educate students so that they can be financially capable adults. Many states have mandated financial literacy education before high school graduation and there is no lack of programs dedicated to getting students more financially prepared for the real world. Despite all of these efforts, financial knowledge scores of young adults have remained the same (Friedline & West, 2016).
At the heart of this study was finding a high impact way to teach financial literacy. This study’s purpose was to examine whether experiential education added value to a financial literacy program. Focus groups were used to explore whether fifth graders had more positive attitudes, increased interest and motivation and greater feelings of self-efficacy after the experiential portion of a financial literacy program, Junior Achievement BizTown.
","abstract_html":"<p>According to Marketwatch.com the lack of financial literacy among U.S. citizens has cost upwards of $200 billion over the last twenty years. Besides racking up student loan debt that averaged about $37,172 per student in 2016 (Marketwatch.com) millennials and those in Generation Z are also the most likely to engage in risky financial behaviors like payday loans, pawnshops and tax refund advances (PwC, 2016; Mottolla, 2014). Being financially vulnerable as young adults compounded with today’s increasingly complex financial environment (Batty et al., 2015), make fertile ground for mistakes that have lifelong impact. </p> <p>Over the last 20 years, much has been done to better educate students so that they can be financially capable adults. Many states have mandated financial literacy education before high school graduation and there is no lack of programs dedicated to getting students more financially prepared for the real world. Despite all of these efforts, financial knowledge scores of young adults have remained the same (Friedline & West, 2016). </p> <p>At the heart of this study was finding a high impact way to teach financial literacy. This study’s purpose was to examine whether experiential education added value to a financial literacy program. Focus groups were used to explore whether fifth graders had more positive attitudes, increased interest and motivation and greater feelings of self-efficacy after the experiential portion of a financial literacy program, Junior Achievement BizTown. </p>","abstract_has_math":true,"creators":["Endsley, Abra Akers"],"institution":"Eastern Kentucky University","degree_name":"Doctor of Education (EdD)","degree_level":"Doctoral's","degree_discipline":"Educational Leadership and Policy Studies","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2020,"date_issued":"2020-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2020-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:16:00Z","subjects":["experiential education","experiential learning","financial literacy","Junior Achievement","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Educational Methods"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright 2020 Abra Akers Endsley"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/658","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Endsley, Abra Akers"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Educational Leadership and Policy Studies"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Doctoral's"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Education (EdD)"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Eastern Kentucky University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["experiential education","experiential learning","financial literacy","Junior Achievement","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Educational Methods"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2020 Abra Akers Endsley"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/658"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["According to Marketwatch.com the lack of financial literacy among U.S. citizens has cost upwards of $200 billion over the last twenty years. Besides racking up student loan debt that averaged about $37,172 per student in 2016 (Marketwatch.com) millennials and those in Generation Z are also the most likely to engage in risky financial behaviors like payday loans, pawnshops and tax refund advances (PwC, 2016; Mottolla, 2014). Being financially vulnerable as young adults compounded with today’s increasingly complex financial environment (Batty et al., 2015), make fertile ground for mistakes that have lifelong impact.
Over the last 20 years, much has been done to better educate students so that they can be financially capable adults. Many states have mandated financial literacy education before high school graduation and there is no lack of programs dedicated to getting students more financially prepared for the real world. Despite all of these efforts, financial knowledge scores of young adults have remained the same (Friedline & West, 2016).
At the heart of this study was finding a high impact way to teach financial literacy. This study’s purpose was to examine whether experiential education added value to a financial literacy program. Focus groups were used to explore whether fifth graders had more positive attitudes, increased interest and motivation and greater feelings of self-efficacy after the experiential portion of a financial literacy program, Junior Achievement BizTown.
"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/PDF"]},{"key":"dc:source","label":"Dc Source","values":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Does Experiential Learning Add Value in Financial Literacy Education: A Qualitative Investigation"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Endsley, Abra Akers"],"dc:description.abstract":["According to Marketwatch.com the lack of financial literacy among U.S. citizens has cost upwards of $200 billion over the last twenty years. Besides racking up student loan debt that averaged about $37,172 per student in 2016 (Marketwatch.com) millennials and those in Generation Z are also the most likely to engage in risky financial behaviors like payday loans, pawnshops and tax refund advances (PwC, 2016; Mottolla, 2014). Being financially vulnerable as young adults compounded with today’s increasingly complex financial environment (Batty et al., 2015), make fertile ground for mistakes that have lifelong impact.
Over the last 20 years, much has been done to better educate students so that they can be financially capable adults. Many states have mandated financial literacy education before high school graduation and there is no lack of programs dedicated to getting students more financially prepared for the real world. Despite all of these efforts, financial knowledge scores of young adults have remained the same (Friedline & West, 2016).
At the heart of this study was finding a high impact way to teach financial literacy. This study’s purpose was to examine whether experiential education added value to a financial literacy program. Focus groups were used to explore whether fifth graders had more positive attitudes, increased interest and motivation and greater feelings of self-efficacy after the experiential portion of a financial literacy program, Junior Achievement BizTown.
"],"dc:format":["application/PDF"],"dc:identifier":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/658"],"dc:publisher":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2020 Abra Akers Endsley"],"dc:source":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"],"dc:subject":["experiential education","experiential learning","financial literacy","Junior Achievement","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Educational Methods"],"dc:title":["Does Experiential Learning Add Value in Financial Literacy Education: A Qualitative Investigation"],"dc:type":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Educational Leadership and Policy Studies"],"thesis:degree_level":["Doctoral's"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Education (EdD)"],"thesis:institution_name":["Eastern Kentucky University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:16:00Z"}