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Introduction...

The global economic crisis is reaching ever lower depths, but how much do your pupils know or understand? Get a class discussion going about how much bankers should be paid. The case of Sir Fred Goodwin is an interesting one. Look at how much we pay bankers (and footballers). Do they deserve it? What does a nurse or teacher earn? If someone has a contract can this be broken? Consider rights and responsibilities, legal entitlements and public opinion.

READ MORE AND WATCH CLIPS or GO STRAIGHT TO SUGGESTED RESOURCES

What is a recession?

What’s so scary about the credit crunch? Basic background from CBBC and What’s a recession? What does it mean?.

What is the credit crunch? How did it start? And how does it all link together? The BBC's Economics Editor Hugh Pym explains in 2 minutes 17 seconds.

Here's another great little interactive tool to look at individually or on a whiteboard. It's a little piece from the Guardian about how different national governments have responded to the financial crisis. Check out anywhere from the USA to Norway, China or Slovakia or Singapore. What have the national governments done?

• Whose responsibility is the national budget?
• Whose resonsibility is the international interdependent financial and banking sector?
• Should banks be regulated by national governments?
• Do we as citizens have a responsibility towards the national budget or national financial situation?
• What about our rights if it all goes pearshaped?
• Do we trust our elected representatives to solve the problem efficently?

Planning the budget

But it's no simple task to decide who gets how much. You have to balance different people's interests and needs.

There are some useful resources for using in class in the Resources Suggestions and Reviews below. For example check out the teachers' resources from the Citizenship Foundation and from HM Treasury and HM Revenue and Customs.

Investing, Borrowing and Saving Money - in plain English

Check out these handy guides to investing, borrowing and saving money. They will help you as well as your pupils get to grips with key concepts.

This page has been written by Millicent Scott

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