NCERT brings personal finance to Class 9, but can one chapter build money habits?

Summary

NCERT’s new Class 9 chapter covers budgeting, saving, investing, insurance and tax. But teachers and experts say lasting money habits will depend on classroom practice, parental involvement and progressive learning.

Budgeting, saving, investing, insurance, borrowing and income tax are now part of a single Class 9 chapter in CBSE-affiliated schools. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) introduced it in its new Social Science textbook, Understanding Society: India and Beyond – Part 2, released on 28 September.

Titled Managing Your Personal Finances, the chapter introduces personal finance through five pillars: income, budgeting, saving, investing, and protection and risk management.

It begins with familiar situations, such as deciding whether to spend pocket money and festival gifts or save them in a gullak. Everyday examples explain inflation, purchasing power and compounding, including how someone who starts saving ten years earlier can accumulate substantially more than someone who starts later. Students also learn about fixed deposits, bonds, shares and mutual funds, insurance, the true cost of equated monthly instalments (EMIs) and income-tax calculations.

But can one chapter translate this knowledge into lasting money habits?

What already exists?

Financial literacy in Indian schools has traditionally been fragmented, with many concepts taught through commerce, economics and accountancy at higher levels rather than through compulsory mainstream lessons for all students.

NCERT has introduced economic concepts in earlier classes, too. In 2024, its Class 6 Social Science textbook included a theme called Economic Life Around Us, covering needs and wants, work, occupations, markets and exchange. Class 7 extended this theme with chapters on Banks and Magic of Finance, introducing money, banking, savings, borrowing and digital payments, including UPI.

The Class 9 chapter builds on this foundation by focusing on personal financial decisions, from comparing investments and understanding risk to evaluating borrowing costs and calculating income tax.

In the foreword, NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani says the textbook aligns with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023, which emphasise reasoning, responsible citizenship and preparedness for a changing world.

Its inclusion in mainstream Social Science of Class 9 means students who later pursue science or humanities will also encounter financial concepts.

Beyond terminology

V. Pradeep Kumar, visiting professor and career and management consultant, said education should prepare students for everyday challenges, not just examinations. Introducing financial literacy in Class 9 can encourage responsible attitudes towards spending, saving and investment.

However, exposure to concepts does not automatically translate into practical skills.

Kunal Bhakat, a certified NISM and NCFE financial literacy trainer, said the chapter includes useful activities, such as preparing a budget for a new school year. But teachers need sufficient time to explain concepts, conduct exercises and discuss mistakes.

“Without adequate time and continuity, students may learn the terminology without understanding how to apply it in everyday situations,” he said.