Financial Literacy Month is celebrated nationwide throughout the month of April. The Business & Communications Librarian Rashida Scott Blades is celebrating April as Critical Financial Literacy Month (CritFinLit) with a readers' advisory list. A readers' advisory is a curated list of items on a specific topic or theme. This list will highlight specific resources such as books, articles, worksheets, and more to help the SDSU community understand the topics and systems that impact their financial present and future. “A thick view of financial literacy recognizes that one’s financial choices and decisions occur within a social system and affect the lives of other participants in that system. People make financial choices that affect the lives of themselves and others. These decisions result from the degree of care or control that one experiences. While conventional financial literacy emphasizes the financial aspect of decision-making, a critically compassionate approach considers the near and distant social consequences of their decisions” (Lucey, 2015). The critical term is taken from Critical Information Literacy Theory and Critical Data Literacy which encompasses a way of thinking and teaching that examines the social construction and political dimensions of libraries and information, problematizing information's production and use so that library users may think critically about such forces (ALA). This is also a call out to cultural competency where information is written by and about people from a specific community.
Why does this matter? Your understanding of these concepts will affect your life and the lives of those around you. The Center for Microeconomic Data reported that household debt balances increased by $212 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, a 1.2% rise from 2023 Q3. Balances now stand at $17.50 trillion and have increased by $3.4 trillion since the end of 2019, just before the pandemic recession according to the New York Federal Reserve 2023 Q4 report (2023). A financially literate person will have a foundational understanding and relationship with money with the ability to make beneficial decisions. You will also understand how to find information based on your specific needs as well as the barriers to accessing financial information.
For career seekers, the goal is for you to understand how common business practices have affected underrepresented communities and to consider who else is missing from the conversation. Think critically about how to answer these questions. How do we find ways to provide information and support for those seeking financial competence? How do we help them navigate current financial systems? In what ways can we change these practices to better help people by reducing or eliminating unintended consequences? How do we prevent exposure to predatory practices?
You can find the display accompanying this research guide under the dome on level 1. All items on the display are available for check out.
References
Each tab on the left will highlight a specific category within Financial Literacy for the month of April. You will find library resources such as books, articles, policy, worksheets, and organizations to help you become financially literate.
