The Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE) has joined hands with India's National Stock Exchange (NSE) Academy to impart financial literacy to Class IX students across the state, an official said on Saturday.
NSE Academy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE).
The NBSE has made the academy's financial literacy course compulsory for the students of Class IX in all higher secondary schools under the board for academic year 2017.
"The Board has taken the decision to make financial literacy compulsory for Class IX in all higher secondary schools as it felt that financial empowerment at a young age is very important if they are to improve the quality of life," NBSE Chairperson Asano Sekhose said.
She said the objective of the course is to help the students acquire necessary life skills and prepare them to learn about the basics of financial management and discipline.
The financial literacy course called Concepts of Financial Literacy has been designed by NSE Academy and will help in familiarising students about the basics of finance and financial Planning.
As part of the initiative, the academy trains the teachers who then teach the students.
"For the 2017 academic session, teachers from 167 schools registered with the board have been trained at the board's office in Kohima by NSE Academy faculty Arindam Bakshi," Sekhose said.
More than 15,000 students are expected to enrol for this course in 2017, the NBSE Chairperson said.
"NSE Academy is committed to increasing financial literacy among secondary school students across the country. The board has played a very positive role by making the financial literacy course compulsory for students of Class IX," Ravi Varanasi, Chief Business Development NSE and CEO, NSE Academy, said.
Exuding confidence that the course will sensitise students about money management and financial planning, to build a sound financial future, Varanasi said students can also pursue career options in the financial sector after studying the courses run by the academy.
He said the curriculum comprises of 25 periods of 45 minutes each wherein students would be taught financial planning, setting of financial goals, concepts of savings and investments, banking transactions and making a family budget.
The textbook for the course will be available at the board's office. NSE Academy will conduct an offline examination at the end of the academic year.
Varanasi said the NSE Academy and the NBSE will issue joint certificates to students and teachers under various categories.
The academy also runs a successful financial literacy course in partnership with the State Boards of Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Goa.
The Nagaland Board had introduced the financial literacy course in selected schools in the three districts of Kohima, Mokokchung and Dimapur in 2016.
During the pilot project around 5,150 students had enrolled for the course in Class IX, across 60 schools.
--IANS
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