A new law will change the way Kansas students learn about money.

With the stroke of a pen, Governor Mark Parkinson signed Senate Bill 84, also known as financial literacy education, inside his office at the Statehouse on Tuesday.

The bill requires school districts to put more emphasis on teaching financial issues such as credit card debt, understanding loans, savings and how to start a budget.

Kansas already teaches similar financial topics in the classroom, but the major difference is that this law would require Kansas students to answer financial literacy questions on state assessment tests.

"We hear a lot of horror stories about kids getting out of high school or college not being able to balance a checkbook or getting into a huge amount of credit card debt," said Governor Parkinson. "We need to make sure we're teaching our students what to do and what to avoid."

"Today's economy certainly gives a lot more attention to the need for financial literacy education," said Dennis McKinney, State Treasurer. "So people understand the power of compound interest, understand the value of saving."

Bob Mackey, executive director of Housing and Credit Counseling, Inc., or HCCI, said the law is a positive step forward for Kansas students. He said people who come to HCCI for financial counseling don't know how to balance a budget or know anything about their credit report. He hopes this new law will change that.

"There are things that can be taught at the high school level, the junior high level and so on, so when they become a consumer and out on their own, they'll understand better how to do a budget, what's a credit report mean and why it's important," Mackey said. "We have so many clients who come in who say if we just had this training in high school or junior high, we'd be so much better off."

McKinney said as the state's standardized test is revised every two to three years, more financial literacy questions will be added. But, some teachers believe adding financial literacy questions to standardized tests takes away from students' ability to learn.

You can get an in-depth perspective on area teacher's thoughts on this issue in a March 26 report by 49 News Education Reporter Justin Schmidt.