Financial Literacy and Capability of Public School Teachers
Keywords:
Financial literacy and capability, financial behavior of public school teachers, money management and investment planningAbstract
This research investigated public school teachers' financial literacy and capability in a medium-sized division in Central Philippines for the school year 2023–2024. Adopting a descriptive-correlational research design, the respondents were the 134 teachers who were determined using stratified random sampling. The researcher-validated questionnaire was used as a data-gathering instrument. The data were analyzed using the SPSS software and evaluated using mean, frequency count, Mann-Whitney U Test, and Spearman's rho correlation. Results indicated that most teachers showed a high financial literacy regarding financial knowledge, financial attitudes, and financial behavior. However, some gaps are found in planning ahead and choosing financial products and services. The findings also indicated statistically significant differences in financial literacy and capability of the public school teachers in terms of age, average monthly family income, and length of service. Furthermore, the findings reveal a moderately positive relationship. A synthesis of targeted interventions to improve teachers’ financial management and investment skills is suggested to promote their financial well-being.
References
Abaya, A. C., Ramos, M. S., & De Guzman, J. M. (2021). Financial literacy and preparedness on life insurance among public school teachers in Cabanatuan City. International Journal of Multidisciplinary: Applied Business and Education Research, 2(11), 1241–1250. https://doi.org/10.11594/ijmaber.02.11.10
Alagano, C. B. (2019). Debt and dignity: Financial challenges of Filipino public-school teachers. Philippine Education Research Journal, 14 (2), 55–79.
Alagcan, J. F. (2019). Smart money habits for the Filipino family. C & E Publishing.
Alchemer. (2022). Stratified random sampling: Definition, method and examples. https://www.alchemer.com/resources/blog/stratified-random-sampling-definition-method-and-examples/
Almeida, M. C., & Reyes, D. M. (2019). The impact of financial wellness programs on the financial behavior of government employees in the Philippines. Philippine Journal of Public Administration, 63(2), 115–132.
Ang, R. L. (2020). Mapping the financial capability of public-school teachers in Metro Manila. Philippine Journal of Education, 99 (1), 23–42.
Asa, A. R., & Nautwima, R. M. (2022). Determinants of financial capability: A situational analysis for Namibia. International Journal of Financial Studies, 10 (2). https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7072/10/2/33
Australian Government. (2022). National financial capability strategy. Australian Securities & Investments Commission. https://financialcapability.gov.au/strategy
Bautista, J., Macalalad, J., & Aquino, R. (2023). Financial literacy and behavior of public school teachers in Region IV-A. Journal of Educational Management, 12 (1), 22–35. https://ejournals.ph/article.php?id=19331
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). (2019). 2019 financial inclusion survey: Examining the financial health of Filipino adults. https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Media_And_Research/Fin_Inc_Reports/FIS_2019.pdf
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). (2020). National strategy for financial inclusion. https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Media_And_Research/Publications/NSFI.pdf
Bernardo, A. B. I., Salanga, M. G. C., & Reyes, M. E. (2022). Financial attitudes and saving behavior of Filipino teachers: Evidence from a developing country. Philippine Journal of Psychology, 55 (1), 33–57. https://archium.ateneo.edu/psychology-faculty-pubs/234/
Bernardo, L. A., Cruz, M. J., & Navarro, F. D. (2022). Digital financial engagement among teachers in the Philippines: A comparative study by age group. Philippine Journal of Social Sciences and Education, 14 (2), 45–58. https://philsocsci.com/index.php/pjsse/article/view/450
Cañete–Ban, J., Pasaporte-Bautista, M., & Bautista, M. A. (2025). School Heads' Practices and Skills in Financial Management in Relation to Teachers' Performance.
Carpio, R. M., Dizon, J. C., & Villanueva, M. A. (2023). Financial literacy of high school teachers: Basis for enhancing teacher education curriculum. International Journal of Education and Social Science Research, 6(2), 45–56.
Crossman, A. (2019). Understanding reliability in research. ThoughtCo.https://www.thoughtco.com/reliability-in-research-3026550
Department of Education (DepEd). (2020). Basic education development plan 2030.
https://www.deped.gov.ph/2020/12/15/basic-education-development-plan-2030/
Department of Education (DepEd). (2020). Results-based performance management system (RPMS) manual for teachers. Department of Education, Philippines.
Dewi, M. K., et al. (2020). Financial literacy and financial behavior: The mediation role of financial capability. Management Science Letters, 10 (2), 363–370.
https://www.growingscience.com/msl/Vol10/msl_2020_27.pdf
Domingo, J. M. C., & Fajardo, A. C. (2022). Financial literacy and financial management practices among public elementary school teachers in Laguna, Philippines. International Journal of Multidisciplinary: Applied Business and Education Research, 3(8), 1554–1563. https://doi.org/10.11594/ijmaber.03.08.20
Escobarte, A. T. (2020). Consolidated status report of resolved and pending administrative cases against DepEd personnel for dishonesty and willful failure to pay just debts [Internal memorandum]. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs, Department of Education. Cited in Llego, M. A. (2022, August 14). Administrative cases filed by private lending institutions against DepEd personnel. TeacherPH. https://www.teacherph.com/administrative-cases-filed-private-lending-institutions/
Dewi, R. K., Lestari, T. P., & Sari, M. M. (2020). Financial literacy and its impact on financial behavior: A study of Indonesian society. Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business, 7(10), 19–27. https://doi.org/10.13106/jafeb.2020.vol7.no10.019
Fan, Y. (2022). Mean and statistical interpretation in education research. International Educational Research Journal. https://ierj.in/journal/index.php/ierj/article/view/2525
Fernando, J. M. (2021). Teachers and the five pillars of Filipino financial literacy. Journal of Philippine Teacher Education, 12 (2), 37–54.
Gabia, R. B. (2021). Financial behaviors and attitudes of Filipino public school teachers. Philippine Journal of Financial Education, 9 (1), 14–28. https://repository.usp.edu.ph/handle/20.500.12525/840
Gabia, M. M. (2021). Financial literacy and financial management practices of public school teachers in the Philippines. International Journal of Advanced Research and Publications, 5(11), 100–106.
Galicia L., J. T., Navarro, C. J., & Dela Cruz, A. P. (2022). Salary loans and purchasing behaviors of public school teachers in the Philippines. Southeast Asian Journal of Education, 5 (1), 29–41. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.xxxx/xxxx
Galicia, L., Obar, S. A., Ursudan, V. A., Factoriza, O., Amiscosa, A., Hernandez, C., Rodriguez, M., Macalindong, M. V., & Panopio, M. K. (2025). “I am going to ‘Loandon’: Understanding the financial challenges of select teachers in the Philippines. SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5106687
Hani, R. A. (2021). Filipino financial literacy: Challenges and prospects. Manila Bulletin. https://mb.com.ph/2021/09/21/filipino-financial-literacy-challenges-and-prospects/
Home Credit Philippines. (2022). Financial literacy survey of Filipino millennials.
https://homecredit.ph/news/financial-literacy-study/
Kiplinger. (2019). Personal finance: What it means and why it's important. Kiplinger.
Klapper, L., Lusardi, A., & van Oudheusden, P. (2022). Financial literacy around the world: Insights from the Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services Global Financial Literacy Survey. Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center. https://gflec.org/initiatives/sp-global-finlit-survey/
Lin, J., & Bumcrot, C. (2022). The state of U.S. financial capability: The 2022 National Financial Capability Study. FINRA Investor Education Foundation. https://www.finrafoundation.org/knowledge-we-gain/research/nfcs
Llego, M. A. (2022, July 2). DepEd personnel face 335 administrative cases due to debts, dishonesty – report. TeacherPH. https://www.teacherph.com/deped-personnel-face-335-administrative-cases-due-to-debts-dishonesty/
Lusardi, A. (2019). Financial literacy and the need for financial education: Evidence and implications. Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics, 155 (1). https://sjes.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41937-019-0027-5
Middleton, F. (2019). Validity in research: Definitions, types, and examples. Scribbr.
https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/validity/
Nagwa. (2022). Understanding Spearman's rho in educational research. Research Methods Journal.
https://www.nagwa.com/en/explainers/109178139701/
National Financial Educators Council (NFEC). (2023). What is financial literacy?
https://www.financialeducatorscouncil.org/what-is-financial-literacy
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). (2019). Pensions at a glance 2019: OECD and G20 indicators. https://doi.org/10.1787/b6d3dcfc-en
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). (2020). Measuring financial literacy and financial inclusion: Results of the 2020 OECD/INFE survey. https://www.oecd.org/financial/education/2020-INFE-FinLit-Measurement.pdf
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). (2020). OECD/INFE 2020 international survey of adult financial literacy. OECD Publishing. https://www.oecd.org/financial/education/oecd-infe-2020-international-survey-of-adult-financial-literacy.pdf
Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS). (2019). Financial inclusion, financial education, and financial regulation in the Philippines. PIDS Policy Notes No. 2019-10.
https://pidswebs.pids.gov.ph/CDN/PUBLICATIONS/pidspn1910.pdf
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). (2021). Family income and expenditure survey (FIES) 2021.
https://psa.gov.ph/content/family-income-and-expenditure-survey-fies-2021
Pinzon, A. G. (2022). “I have loans”: A communicative study of teachers living with debt. International Journal of Educational Research and Development, 4(1), 89–104.
Red Star Education. (2022). Consequences of financial illiteracy. https://redstareducation.com/blog/consequences-of-financial-illiteracy/
Shapiro, S. (2022). Displaying data: Percentages and frequency counts in education research. Educational Statistics Review. https://educationalstatisticsreview.com/displaying-data-percentages-frequency/
Sundjaja, A., et al. (2021). Nonparametric analysis: Mann-Whitney U test in research. Asian Journal of Management Sciences & Education, 10 (1), 1–11. https://ajms.ajouronline.com/index.php/AJMS/article/view/6458
Tabernilla, C. M. (2023). Financial well-being and burnout among public school teachers in urban districts. International Journal of Education and Development, 11 (4), 88–102.
Tagpulot, J. M., & Macalisang, J. R. (2024). Debt and financial stress among teachers in Northern Mindanao: A quantitative approach. Mindanao Educational Research Journal, 7 (1), 34–49.
Tilan, M. C., & Cabal, K. L. (2021). Financial literacy of public school teachers and personnel in the Philippines. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Publications, 4(8), 1–7.
Tolentino, R. J., & Mendoza, K. L. (2022). Financial capability among senior high school teachers in Quezon City. Philippine Journal of Education, 5 (2), 87–102. https://pje.org/index.php/pje/article/view/126
Tuazon, M. J. S. (2020). Community-based financial literacy programs and behavioral change among vulnerable groups. Philippine Journal of Social Development, 12 (2), 89–108.
Tulio, E. M., & Caballes, M. G. (2019). Financial literacy and investment practices of public school teachers in the Philippines. Journal of Business and Finance Research, 12(1), 45–58.
Villanueva, G. A. (2021, May 7). Why Pinoys equate financial success with “things”—and how to break the habit. MoneySense Philippines. https://www.moneysense.com.ph/pinoy-financial-habits
Villanueva, R. S., & Bernabe, L. M. (2019). Personal financial management among Filipino teachers: Issues and implications. Philippine Education Research Journal, 7 (3), 33–46. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1234567
World Bank. (2022). Financial capability and inclusion.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/financialinclusion/brief/financial-capability
World Bank. (2022). Financial capability and its impact on development.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/financialinclusion/brief/financial-capability
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ryan M. Reyes, Dr. Luis P. Serviñas (Author)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.