I rarely miss an opportunity to deride the American education system; one of my main complaints is that it often focuses on teaching obscure if not downright esoteric skill sets as opposed to the basic skills most people need to function in society. I, for instance, graduated from high school never having been taught to use a checkbook (I picked it up pretty quickly, but still.) There’s an article in the new New Yorker arguing that if the recent recession and housing market implosion has taught us anything, it’s that we need meaningful financial education.

We really need something more like a financial equivalent of drivers’ ed. There’s evidence that just improving basic calculation skills and inculcating a few key concepts could make a significant difference. One study of the few states that have mandated financial education in schools found that it had a surprisingly large impact on savings rates. And the Center for American Progress has found that, across the country, education and counselling by nonprofit organizations, like the Massachusetts Affordable Housing Alliance, have helped low-income families buy and hold onto homes, even during the housing bubble. The point isn’t to turn the average American into Warren Buffett but to help people avoid disasters and day-to-day choices that eat away at their bank accounts.

I couldn’t agree more. We teach algebra and calculus — which 90% of students won’t use — but we don’t teach them how to avoid getting screwed on a home loan or to recognize a credit card offer with insane terms. The reason of course is that the teachers unions are in bed with the American finance industry. And they all take their orders directly from the Mexican Elvis who lives in a UFO parked in the North Pole.