Ontario will now require high school students to pass a financial literacy test in Grade 10 in order to graduate, a move the province says will better prepare youth for real-world money decisions. The test will be written as part of the mandatory Grade 10 career studies course. Students will be required to score at least 70 per cent. Those who do not pass will be given additional support and opportunities to re-write. The requirement is slated to start in September 2026. The province says the change is aimed at giving students practical skills, including budgeting, saving, investing and avoiding financial scams. Students and parents say the addition addresses a long-standing gap in the curriculum. Seventeen-year-old Noah Bertrand, who works part-time with post-secondary plans to study commerce, says learning about taxes, interest and everyday expenses is key as teens transition into adulthood. “At this age, you’re starting to actually have expenses and things you have to pay for and just even a little bit of education and knowing what you’re paying for and why you’re paying for it can be very important,” he says. “We all talk about the big purchases and stuff like that but it’s the small daily things and weekly things that you’re paying for and they sort of add up. And if you learn how to limit those things just a little bit every day that’s very important.” Parent Gaetan Purdy, whose children are still years away from high school, says the program targets real-life needs many adults were never taught in school, including saving for major purchases like a home. “I think this program is a great idea,” he says. “Learning about how to save money, it’s so important, and if kids are starting to learn this in high school and they have questions, they can always go back to their parents and have those conversations.” Financial experts say the lessons are overdue. Marc Rouleau, a senior vice-president with Doyle Salewski Inc., says understanding even the basics of how money works, from credit and interest rates to monthly bills and calculating sales tax, can help young people set limits and make better decisions. “You can never teach financial literacy too early because everybody along the line is going to have income, whether it’s a job whether it’s a pension, and whether an expense is going along with that,” Rouleau said. Rouleau says a large part of financial literacy is knowing “how to say no.” “Knowledge is power and when you have knowledge about how your finances work you can put in guard rails, and if things start going sideways you will have a better understanding of what to do,” Rouleau said. “If you can teach kids, and then young adults, enough discipline when they are young, down the line I think it’s going to be embedded in their systems, and they will be able to say no to a lot of these things because you are exposed to it 24/7 now with your phones.” Data from Statistics Canada shows younger Canadians remain under financial pressure, owing about $1.66 for every dollar earned, with debt often tied to student loans, credit cards and vehicle payments. The requirement had been expected earlier, but was delayed to allow more time for implementation, with TVO developing course materials and test content. With files from Canadian Press.
