Standards for How Long Is Your Life?

Standard: 13

Name: Income

In a market economy, wages and salaries the prices of labor services are determined just as other prices are, by the interaction of buyers and sellers. The buyers of labor services are employers. They are willing to pay higher wages and salaries to those employees who can produce more or better goods or services in a given amount of time. Students who understand this will appreciate the value of the skills they can acquire by completing high school, and perhaps college or a vocational training program. Understanding the forces affecting wages and other sources of income will be increasingly important in the future, when workers may change employers and careers more often than in the past. Regardless of the occupations or industries in which today's students eventually work, they are likely to find that they will have to continue their education and training to maintain or increase their earnings.

• 4-12: Students will understand that: Income for most people is determined by the market value of the productive resources they sell. What workers earn primarily depends on the market value of what they produce.
• 4-12: Students will be able to use this knowledge to: Predict future earnings based on their current plans for education, training, and career options.

Name: Saving

Standard: 3

• Students will understand that: People who have sufficient income can choose to save some of it for future uses such as emergencies or later purchases. Savings decisions depend on individual preferences and circumstances. Funds needed for transactions, bill-paying, or purchases, are commonly held in federally insured checking or savings accounts at financial institutions because these accounts offer easy access to their money and low risk. Interest rates, fees, and other account features vary by type of account and between financial institutions, with higher rates resulting in greater compound interest earned by savers.

Name: Spending

Standard: 2

• Students will understand that: A budget is a plan for allocating a person’s spendable income to necessary and desired goods and services. When there is sufficient money in their budget, people may decide to give money to others, save, or invest to achieve future goals. People can often improve their financial wellbeing by making well-informed spending decisions, which includes critical evaluation of price, quality, product information, and method of payment. Individual spending decisions may be influenced by financial constraints, personal preferences, unique needs, peers, and advertising.