Exploring the learning effectiveness of financial literacy from the microworld perspective: Evidence from the simulated transactional interactive concurrent system.

Because the microworld can create a learning environment that allows learners to interact with the real world, the view of the microworld has been widely used in education and training. In this study, the simulated transactional interactive concurrent system (STICS) was used to provide an environment that simulates the stock market trading of the Taiwan Stock Exchange; the goal is to explore the effectiveness of using STICS in enhancing the financial literacy of students. This study adopts a quasi‐experimental design approach and divides students into two groups. The intervention group was made up of 42 students who learned financial knowledge aided by STICS, with a comparison group consisting of 43 students who learned with traditional lecturing and dictating methods. The study found that learners who used the STICS as an aid to learn financial knowledge had significantly better learning effectiveness than those who did not use STICS, in terms of motivation, attitude, and achievement. The intervention group also made significant improvements in average scores in learning motivation and achievement after 8 weeks of experimental teaching and learning. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic This study employs the microworld perspective as a learning scaffold which simulates the real financial environment through computer assistant learning.By means of the computer assistant learning pattern of STICS, it not only enhances the financial literature of learners, but also increases the happiness and fun in the learning process. What this paper adds This allows learners can free from the barrier of insufficient investment funds by using STICS computer assistant learning.The STICS computer assistant learning system have the potential of promoting interactivity between learners and instructors, and improving the students' financial achievements. Implications for practice and/or policy The benefits of the STICS computer assistant learning are not only to enable students to deepen their understanding of the content of the textbook, but also to experience practical trading environment, such as profitability, risk, delivery and payment, long‐buying and short‐selling, etc.From this study, it is known that improving students' financial literacy not only contributes to personal wealth, but also avoids the recurrence of financial turmoil.In the future, we should devote ourselves to teach students how to apply knowledge to the real environment in an immersive learning, without being out of reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]