Approaches for Strengthening Economic Education in Gyeonggi-do
Year2024
Author Han Mi-jin
Original
Abstract
This study aims to systematically revitalise economic education in Gyeonggi-do to support economic self-reliance and regional economic development.
Economic education projects in Gyeonggi-do are conducted individually by various departments in the province, but there is a lack of coordination among them. In addition, much of the economic education is focused on specific areas, such as entrepreneurship and labour rights education, and the original functions of economic education, such as financial literacy and financial management education, are not fully fulfilled. As a result, residents' economic education may be biased towards some topics or goals, and it is difficult to maintain consistency in the overall economic education system.
However, as the province's ability to directly provide all necessary economic education is limited, it should strengthen cooperation with external institutions such as the Gyeonggi Regional Economic Education Centre to systematically support economic education. In addition to establishing and operating an online economic education platform, the province should also support the effective implementation of economic education through a basic economic education plan and performance evaluation and management.
This study conducted a survey on economic education among residents and found that residents are highly aware of the need for economic education, but the actual participation rate is low. Lack of educational opportunities, lack of information and time constraints were cited as the main reasons for not receiving economic education. The areas with the highest need for economic education were basic financial literacy, financial management, economic principles and preparing for retirement, and there was a demand for education tailored to each life cycle and closely related to real life. In addition, the need for economic education for vulnerable groups and small businesses was highlighted, and it was suggested that digital-based economic education should be expanded so that more citizens can receive economic education. Based on these findings, it was determined that economic education in Gyeonggi-do needs to increase equity of educational opportunities and build a system that can maximise practical educational effects.
Based on these findings, this study establishes the vision and promotion strategy for economic education in Gyeonggi-do and provides specific directions for its implementation. The vision of economic education in Gyeonggi-do is 'Achieving economic independence and inclusive growth', and aims to provide systematic economic education to enable citizens to acquire economic knowledge and make rational economic decisions. To this end, it sets practicality, fairness and systematicity as the basic principles of economic education and proposes three core strategies.
The first strategy is real-life economic education, which aims to strengthen economic education that is tailored to each life cycle and linked to real life. This will help citizens understand and apply economic concepts in their daily lives. Childhood requires education on basic economic concepts and financial literacy, while adolescence requires education on economic decision-making and career exploration. Young adults need practical education on finance, investment and wealth management, and middle-aged and older adults need education on financial planning and digital financial literacy. This will help citizens acquire the economic knowledge they need at each stage of life and apply it in real life.
The second strategy is to provide equal educational opportunities by increasing access to economic education and tailoring it to different groups, including vulnerable groups. In particular, economic education should be extended to target groups that are likely to be excluded from traditional economic education, such as low-income earners, people with disabilities, migrant women, the self-employed, farmers and workers in small and medium-sized enterprises. To make education more accessible, the government should introduce face-to-face education methods using online learning platforms, as well as offline education, and develop various forms of educational content that allow residents with time constraints to learn freely. In addition, local public and private organisations should be encouraged to participate in economic education, and the promotion of education programmes should be strengthened so that more residents can benefit from economic education.
The third strategy is systematic management of economic education, which involves strengthening the governance of economic education, standardising teaching materials, and evaluating effectiveness to ensure continuous improvement. To improve the effectiveness of economic education, the planning and operation of economic education should be coordinated by regional economic education centres, and cooperation among educational institutions should be strengthened by activating economic education working groups. In addition, economic education materials should be standardised and a systematic training programme should be implemented to enhance the capacity of economic education teachers. A system for evaluating the effectiveness of economic education should be established to continuously monitor changes in economic literacy and satisfaction among education participants, and to improve education programmes based on this information.
To achieve this, Gyeonggi-do should work with the Gyeonggi Regional Economic Education Centre to conduct economic education programmes and use online economic education platforms to expand access to education. It should also activate working committees and establish a public-private partnership system to ensure that economic education is carried out systematically. To improve the effectiveness of economic education, a digital education platform should be established to help citizens easily find and learn the economic education they want, and incentives, personalised learning and AI-based learning recommendation systems should be used to maximise the effectiveness of education.
This strategic approach is expected to increase the sustainability of economic education in Gyeonggi-do and significantly strengthen the economic capabilities of its citizens. Economic education is an important policy tool that goes beyond simply teaching economic concepts to help citizens actively respond to the changing economic environment and make rational economic decisions. Therefore, Gyeonggi Province should make continuous efforts to build a more systematic economic education system and operate it effectively.
Economic education projects in Gyeonggi-do are conducted individually by various departments in the province, but there is a lack of coordination among them. In addition, much of the economic education is focused on specific areas, such as entrepreneurship and labour rights education, and the original functions of economic education, such as financial literacy and financial management education, are not fully fulfilled. As a result, residents' economic education may be biased towards some topics or goals, and it is difficult to maintain consistency in the overall economic education system.
However, as the province's ability to directly provide all necessary economic education is limited, it should strengthen cooperation with external institutions such as the Gyeonggi Regional Economic Education Centre to systematically support economic education. In addition to establishing and operating an online economic education platform, the province should also support the effective implementation of economic education through a basic economic education plan and performance evaluation and management.
This study conducted a survey on economic education among residents and found that residents are highly aware of the need for economic education, but the actual participation rate is low. Lack of educational opportunities, lack of information and time constraints were cited as the main reasons for not receiving economic education. The areas with the highest need for economic education were basic financial literacy, financial management, economic principles and preparing for retirement, and there was a demand for education tailored to each life cycle and closely related to real life. In addition, the need for economic education for vulnerable groups and small businesses was highlighted, and it was suggested that digital-based economic education should be expanded so that more citizens can receive economic education. Based on these findings, it was determined that economic education in Gyeonggi-do needs to increase equity of educational opportunities and build a system that can maximise practical educational effects.
Based on these findings, this study establishes the vision and promotion strategy for economic education in Gyeonggi-do and provides specific directions for its implementation. The vision of economic education in Gyeonggi-do is 'Achieving economic independence and inclusive growth', and aims to provide systematic economic education to enable citizens to acquire economic knowledge and make rational economic decisions. To this end, it sets practicality, fairness and systematicity as the basic principles of economic education and proposes three core strategies.
The first strategy is real-life economic education, which aims to strengthen economic education that is tailored to each life cycle and linked to real life. This will help citizens understand and apply economic concepts in their daily lives. Childhood requires education on basic economic concepts and financial literacy, while adolescence requires education on economic decision-making and career exploration. Young adults need practical education on finance, investment and wealth management, and middle-aged and older adults need education on financial planning and digital financial literacy. This will help citizens acquire the economic knowledge they need at each stage of life and apply it in real life.
The second strategy is to provide equal educational opportunities by increasing access to economic education and tailoring it to different groups, including vulnerable groups. In particular, economic education should be extended to target groups that are likely to be excluded from traditional economic education, such as low-income earners, people with disabilities, migrant women, the self-employed, farmers and workers in small and medium-sized enterprises. To make education more accessible, the government should introduce face-to-face education methods using online learning platforms, as well as offline education, and develop various forms of educational content that allow residents with time constraints to learn freely. In addition, local public and private organisations should be encouraged to participate in economic education, and the promotion of education programmes should be strengthened so that more residents can benefit from economic education.
The third strategy is systematic management of economic education, which involves strengthening the governance of economic education, standardising teaching materials, and evaluating effectiveness to ensure continuous improvement. To improve the effectiveness of economic education, the planning and operation of economic education should be coordinated by regional economic education centres, and cooperation among educational institutions should be strengthened by activating economic education working groups. In addition, economic education materials should be standardised and a systematic training programme should be implemented to enhance the capacity of economic education teachers. A system for evaluating the effectiveness of economic education should be established to continuously monitor changes in economic literacy and satisfaction among education participants, and to improve education programmes based on this information.
To achieve this, Gyeonggi-do should work with the Gyeonggi Regional Economic Education Centre to conduct economic education programmes and use online economic education platforms to expand access to education. It should also activate working committees and establish a public-private partnership system to ensure that economic education is carried out systematically. To improve the effectiveness of economic education, a digital education platform should be established to help citizens easily find and learn the economic education they want, and incentives, personalised learning and AI-based learning recommendation systems should be used to maximise the effectiveness of education.
This strategic approach is expected to increase the sustainability of economic education in Gyeonggi-do and significantly strengthen the economic capabilities of its citizens. Economic education is an important policy tool that goes beyond simply teaching economic concepts to help citizens actively respond to the changing economic environment and make rational economic decisions. Therefore, Gyeonggi Province should make continuous efforts to build a more systematic economic education system and operate it effectively.
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