COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio high school students might soon learn about “free market capitalism” in their classrooms after Senate Bill 17 passed the Ohio Senate session with a vote of 31 to 1.
Ohio public high schools already teach financial literacy, including topics related to capitalism, but lawmakers want to ensure that it becomes an official part of the curriculum. The primary sponsors of the bill argue that students need to be prepared for the 21st century workplace standards and believe that this bill will give them the tools to be successful in adulthood.
Senate Bill 17 outlines guidelines for the proposed curriculum, including the three classical factors of economic production, private ownership of capital, the difference between supply and demand of goods and services, and being financially smart with wages.
Cynthia Peeples, the founding director of Ohio for Education, a nonpartisan coalition that believes every child deserves an honest high-quality education, spoke about the importance of the new curriculum.
“If we’re going to talk about what capitalism, you know, how it brings advantages to our nation, we also want to talk about some of the abuses of capitalism as well and how it can exploit workers in communities,” she said. “What a lack of government oversight and regulation can do in a free market economy, really pushing back against this bootstrap theory where if you just work hard, you can succeed, because we know that there are some systemic and structural inequities in not only our nation but around the globe as well.”
The bill still needs a vote in the house before it heads to the governor’s office and becomes law. With only one lawmaker voting against the bill in the Senate, it has received broad support.
People also expressed concern about the potential drawbacks of focusing solely on capitalism in the curriculum.
“The state Board of Education has worked very hard on the current curriculum being taught for financial literacy in high schools across the state,” she said. “Senate Bill 17 will make it so only capitalism is taught and the curriculum could be less well-rounded.”
The proposal to add “free market capitalism” to the Ohio high school curriculum is part of a larger national debate over what should be taught in schools. Proponents argue that teaching students about capitalism will prepare them for the real world and promote economic growth, while critics say that a singular focus on capitalism ignores the systemic issues and inequalities that exist within the economic system.
As the debate continues, the fate of Senate Bill 17 remains in the hands of the Ohio House of Representatives.
