Arkansas Stock Market Game™
The Stock Market Game™ is an educational tool designed to develop and improve financial literacy for students in grades 4-12. Learning the ins-and-outs of financial literacy at a young age promotes better money habits, leading to greater financial stability in adulthood.
This real-world online investment simulation helps students improve critical-thinking skills and core curriculum knowledge (i.e., math, business, language, social studies, economics, and technology skills).
Economics Arkansas offers the program (which is licensed from the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Foundation) as a 13-week investment simulation for students in Arkansas counties in public, private, parochial schools, homeschool, and out-of-school-time programs. There is also a year-long session from mid-September through mid-April and a competition each fall and spring semester.
Teams of 1-5 students manage virtual $100,000 stock portfolios as they compete in the elementary (grades 4-6), junior high (grades 7-9), or high school (grades 10-12) division. The fall and spring sessions are divided into six state regions—their objective: to grow their investment portfolio while competing with other students in their region and statewide. Teachers act as advisors, assisting each team in finding the best information to make sound investment choices.
The 2018-19 school year saw a record of 15,000+ student enrollment in the program!
The Case for Playing
It's no secret that strong money management skills can set you up for a healthy financial future. The Stock Market Game™ (SMG) program provides invaluable tools to help the next generation acquire these crucial personal finance skills. It is one of Economics Arkansas's most effective and engaging learning tools for students.
SMG meets all of the State and National education standards. A 2008 independent research study, conducted by Learning Points and Associates, shows SMG increases math and personal finance test scores for students engaged in the program. Students research and decipher the meaning of company and market information and use that knowledge to make decisions for their portfolios. The students can also see the results of their decisions based on the performance of their chosen stocks.
What Teachers (and Students) are Saying
A survey of SMG teacher advisors for the 2019-20 academic year found that the best feature of the investment simulation is its real-world application. Students are more tuned in to current events, learn new vocabulary, and collaborate with teammates. Teachers boasted of its engagement level for students as it challenges them to use higher-level critical-thinking and decision-making skills. Teachers also report that acting as an advisor helps them improve their personal knowledge and understanding of the stock market and investing.
One teacher said:
“My students come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Many had never heard of the stock market before we began the simulation. They now want to save money so they can invest in their futures!”
Teacher Resources & Important Dates
The SIFMA Foundation provides digital resources for teachers, including webinars and videos, curriculum maps, and lesson plans. Economics Arkansas also conducts multiple webinars at the beginning of each semester and ongoing support for advisors throughout the year.
Student teams pay a registration fee of $15.00 for a semester session or $30.00 for the year-long session. Funding support is available through multiple organizations for Arkansas teams.
First-place winning teams will be recognized at the end of the school year. The dates for the 2020-2021 Stock Market Game™ program are:
Fall 2020: September 8 – December 4, 2020
Spring 2021: January 11 – April 9, 2021
Year-long: September 8, 2020 – April 16, 2021
Find more information and resources on the Economics Arkansas website.
