Financial education initiative for schoolgirls
„Girls Go Finance” at UniCredit Bank Austria
- As part of the cooperation with Teach For Austria, a special day for schoolgirls from socio-economically disadvantaged schools took place for the second time at the UniCredit Centre at Kaiserwasser
- Around 250 schoolgirls aged between 13 and 15 were able to participate in various workshops on topics such as financial literacy, women-specific financial matters, safety on the internet, sustainability and self-confidence
The “Girls Go Finance” day at the UniCredit Centre at Kaiserwasser was initiated by Marion Morales Albiñana-Rosner, UniCredit Bank Austria Board Member responsible for Wealth Management and Private Banking, who also supports the Teach For Austria corporate volunteering programme. UniCredit Bank Austria supports Teach For Austria in its aim of creating more educational equality in Austria.
“I've been in the classroom several times as part of Teach For Austria and was allowed to design the lessons. I noticed that the girls were much more reserved than the boys. This gave me the idea of organising a day specifically for girls. Following the keen interest last year, we organised another ‘Girls Go Finance’ day here at the UniCredit Centre at Kaiserwasser this year and we are delighted that we were able to get even more female participants interested in this topic this year. Unfortunately, it is still the case in Austria that girls and women do not have the same opportunities as men. They often earn less and therefore have a lower pension later on because they have spent a long time looking after their children. Financial education and boosting self-confidence are important cornerstones to counteract this,” says Marion Morales Albiñana-Rosner about the reasons for organising the event.
Workshops on the topic of finance
The workshops covered various topics relating to finance, such as financial independence, the gender pay gap, women dealing with finances & investments, how a bank account works, what an exchange rate is, how to recognise counterfeit money or what the difference between gross and net is.
One of the highlights for the young people was the workshop "Into life: Organising my monthly budget". In this workshop, the schoolgirls had 1,500 euros at their disposal and had to draw up a household budget. It was not at all easy for the young participants to agree as a group on how much money to spend on individual items.
In addition to traditional financial topics, there was also a whole block on the Internet, online shopping and the debt trap. These workshops, some of which were also held by external speakers, focussed on security on the internet. The module “Watch out, fake news” by Daniela Kraus, Secretary General of the Presseclub Concordia, dealt with fake news, how to recognise it and how social media is connected to it. In “Buy now, pay later”, held by Bettina Pfluger, business editor at the daily newspaper “Der Standard”, the pupils were made aware of the need to exercise caution when making consumer purchases and instalment payments.
The third workshop block covered topics such as women's rights and how to use your voice and posture correctly. Together with Marion Morales Albiñana-Rosner, entrepreneur Vuka Janus led the workshop “I make the world the way I like it”, in which Vuka Janus, a woman from a migrant background, talked about her professional success story. The major topic of sustainability also found its place in the programme with the workshop “Let's save the world - women's power for a better future”.
Delighted feedback from the participants
The students all found the day exciting and useful. “The day was really interesting, and it was fun to learn about financial education, especially since we don't learn much about it in school”, said 13-year-old Alina.
“I particularly enjoyed thinking about what I would buy with the 1,500 euros a month. Although it was not so easy that we agreed. I wanted to buy more cosmetics and others more clothes”, said 14-year-old Magdalena.
A Teach For Austria Fellow said that the Girls Go Finance Day “was well organised, really cool. I liked that there were lots of hands-on activities and small groups. That way the students could get a lot more out of it”.
The day ended with a small concert by EsRap, a hip-hop duo from the 16th district consisting of siblings Esra Özmen and Enes Özmen. The two gave the students the following tip: “Always believe in yourself, don't let anyone intimidate you or put you down. You are the best!“
About Teach For Austria
With the Fellow Programme, Teach For Austria places highly qualified career changers in challenging kindergartens, secondary schools and technical colleges. As fully-fledged teachers and educators, they work for children with difficult starting conditions. The aim is to ensure that all children taught by Teach For Austria Fellows have the necessary skills for a successful start in school and are able to continue their education after compulsory schooling. 481 Fellows have reached around 48,000 children since the programme was launched in 2011. As part of the global Teach For All network, Teach For Austria is committed to the fourth United Nations Sustainable Development Goal: Quality education for all.
Enquiries:
UniCredit Bank Austria Media Relations
Franziska Schenker, Tel.: +43 (0) 5 05 05-51417
E-Mail: franziska.schenker@unicreditgroup.at