Idam Elementary School's sixth-grade students pose in their classroom in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. The students each take on different roles and responsibilities as part of their financial education, such as classroom snack bar owners, chairman, librarian, secretary and banker. Korea Times photo by Lee Yeon-woo

What do parents expect from their children when it comes to money? Their highest hope may simply be that their kids use their allowance wisely rather than spending it all at once on useless things.

Yet, in Dongducheon, in northern Gyeonggi Province, 22 elementary school students prove that they are capable of more than that. They are managing a significant amount of money — and in some cases more wisely than adults.

"After deducting tax, I save almost all of my wages in a term deposit. Every time it reaches maturity, I resubscribe the total amount again, allowing my money to grow," said Kim Eun-yu, a 12-year-old attending Idam Elementary School.

Kim is also a seasoned investor, who successfully sold Coupang shares making a 40 percent profit. Her investment strategy is to "dip your feet in, reap profits and sell immediately."

The students obviously don't trade real money. It's part of the program in Idam Elementary School's sixth-grade Class 4, developed by their homeroom teacher, teaching economy and finance. All financial activities in the class are conducted with a homeroom currency called "sabal."

A student shows an app named "Purple" to The Korea Times, in a classroom at Idam Elementary School, Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. Students can manage all their financial education activities through the app. The school provides tablets, which can be used only in the classroom, for educational purposes. Korea Times photo by Lee Yeon-woo

For instance, as the chairman of the National Assembly, Kim presides over class conferences and gathers agenda items for discussion. In return, she receives 1,200 sabals as a virtual monthly wage. She then pays tax to the teacher: 240 sabals for income tax and 300 sabals as a rental fee for her desk and seat.

With her remaining money, she can do various things, such as joining a term deposit, making investments, purchasing snacks or buying the right to be first in line for lunch.

As of May, the students can invest in stocks of the S&P 500, Apple, Netflix, Coupang and SungEel HiTech. They were all chosen by the students themselves through class meetings.

The class banker, Kim Yu-mi, updates their prices every morning in an app named "Purple." The app manages students' every financial activity.

Their investment strategies are not very different from adults.

Gang I-an seeks long-term investment by investing in stocks she carefully chose based on their growth potential. The class banker Kim never invests her wages due to fears of potential loss. Han Ju-wan, the owner of the classroom snack bar, supplements his business items first and utilizes the remaining wage depending on the situation.

"I've learned the basics now. So when I grow up and start earning a wage, I believe I will be able to manage my money very well," Han said.

Lee Seong-gang, the homeroom teacher of sixth-grade class 4, teaches the students about profitability rates when establishing their own businesses at Idam Elementary School in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. Korea Times photo by Lee Yeon-woo

Their homeroom teacher, Lee Seong-gang, makes the utmost effort to teach responsible asset management.

"Students can feel the stock market as gambling at their first encounter. It's hard to teach them how to analyze companies," Lee said. "I have set higher rates in deposits and ask students to write a consent form before investing in stocks. I also show them news of people who went bankrupt from excessive investment. I want them to start investing after knowing the inherent risks."

During the second semester of this year, the students will also establish their businesses using their sabal credits. In preparation, they finished market research and are deciding on specifics such as profit rates and material costs.

"Students feel proud in fulfilling their roles in the classroom and watching their assets grow," Lee said. "Parents also told me that even at home, students are trying to save real money."

Why is education necessary?

One might question whether such education is necessary or urgent for students at such a young age.

However, students are much more exposed to malicious circumstances than adults anticipate, according to Lee.

On social media, they frequently encounter ads offering small loans. These loan sharks lend small amounts of money, such as 50,000 won ($35.9), to students and demand 60,000 won in return a week later. They even ask children for their parents' resident registration numbers as a guarantee. Without financial knowledge, students are likely to fall prey to these schemes.

High school students in vocational school write resumes at a job fair in Busan, in this July 2022 photo. Newsis

For teenagers in vocational schools, teaching asset management is also crucial. They jump into financial activity right after graduation.

Despite the importance, students are often not availed of such knowledge. Topics not directly impacting college entrance exams are not regarded as crucial educational priorities.

"It's regrettable that finance accounts for such a big part of our society, yet it doesn't receive a sufficient acknowledgment within the education sector," Lee said.

Students have also expressed their need for relevant firsthand financial education.

According to a survey from the finance ministry conducted among 5,000 elementary, middle and high school students last year, 45.4 percent of middle school students and 51.4 percent of high school students said "time allocated to economic education in school is insufficient ."

Additionally, 46.1 percent of middle school students and 52.3 percent of high school students said they wanted to learn about "financial products" the most. Over 30 percent of both middle and high school students expressed a desire to learn about basic economic principles such as market demand and supply.

A student prepares to take a mock test for the annual college entrance exam at a high school in Daegu, June 4. Yonhap

It's not that there haven't been attempts made at a legislative level to solve the issue.

The most recent move came in 2023 when former lawmaker Hong Sung-kook, who has over a decade of experience in the brokerage industry, introduced a bill to add a "finance" subject to the elementary, middle, and high school curricula. But the bill failed to pass the 21st National Assembly.

As of now, the only relevant curriculum lies in the subject of economics, taught in high schools. It is one of the nine elective subjects of the social studies section taken under the college entrance exam.

But few students choose the elective. In the 2024 college entrance exam, only 4,890 students selected economics as a subject, making up just 1.1 percent of the total 444,870 test-takers.

"Economics is generally considered more difficult compared to other social studies subjects, making it less popular. Even for those who study it, it is hard to say that they receive adequate financial education that is applicable to real life," said a high school teacher based in Gwangju, who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing the possibility of parental complaints.

Students participate in a group activity during a class at Idam Elementary School in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. Korea Times photo by Lee Yeon-woo

Idam Elementary School's Lee is worried that the gap in financial literacy is widening, varying significantly by region and by the income levels of children's parents.

"If it's hard to add a new subject, it would be more feasible to start with mandatory one- or two-hour sessions tailored to the student's level. Accumulating those hours will be very beneficial for the children," Lee said.

"Many college students don't even know the difference between a savings account and a fixed deposit account. Shouldn't they at least learn this much at school?"