Students in Hesse urgently demand more knowledge about taxes and finances!

Students in Hesse urgently demand more knowledge about taxes and finances!

More and more young people in Hesse are faced with the challenge of dealing with complex economic and financial issues. A 21-year-old student who works at trade fairs and in the catering industry alongside her studies expresses a lack of understanding about the deductions in her statements. She has a contract for work and realizes that she often doesn't know what gross and net wages mean. This is not an isolated case. According to a report by the FAZ Many new trainees do not know which tax and social security contributions are deducted from their salary.

Representatives from business and banks are therefore calling for a rethink in education policy. They emphasize the need to cover economic topics at school. One idea is to have a doctor explain the costs of treatment and how it is financed by health insurance in class in order to raise awareness of social security contributions.

Economic education and its importance

In fact, surveys show that many career starters are surprised at how little of their gross salary is left after taxes and contributions. The unclear composition of the payroll and the different net wages, even with comparable gross wages, add to the confusion. Many employees have the feeling that they work more for the state than for themselves. Germany has the highest average burden of taxes and duties among the 37 OECD member countries, which makes the urgency of economic education all the more relevant.

In schools, students are increasingly learning how to read a payslip using case studies. They deal with the amount and type of taxes and contributions deducted in order to develop a better understanding of the system of taxes and social security contributions in Germany, like the information platform Teach economy describes.

Debt and Financial Education

The increasing indebtedness among teenagers and young adults is alarming. This often happens due to careless online orders and unnoticed additional costs. It would therefore make sense to provide information in class about the small print in contracts and the effects of interest and compound interest. The Hessian Minister of Education has emphasized that economic topics are anchored in the curricula, but this does not seem to be enough to sustainably overcome the challenges.

Some schools have already started to promote economic activity through student companies and similar activities. Experts suggest intensifying cooperation with industry in order to give students direct contact with representatives from practice and to offer internships. This could help create cross-generational education about economic issues and their applications.