Financial Literacy Among Baccalaureate Students in Morocco: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

This exploratory study examines variation in financial literacy among final-year secondary students by educational track in an Agadir (Morocco) high school, using a convenience sample of 63 students (EG track: n=23; non-EG: n=40). The OECD/INFE (2012) three-dimensional framework — knowledge, attitudes, behaviours — is used to construct a global financial literacy score (FLS). Comparative analyses (Mann-Whitney test, Cohen's d effect size) and associative analyses (Spearman correlations) reveal a moderate overall level (mean FLS = 66.7/100), driven by positive attitudes (79.0) against more limited knowledge (63.5) and behaviours (57.0). No statistically significant difference is found between EG and non-EG students on the global score (p = 0.651; d = 0.14), although a moderate tendency favouring EG emerges on the knowledge dimension (d = 0.40). Socio-familial determinants tested (gender, family financial discussions, parental education, household income) are not statistically significant. These findings, interpreted as informative regardless of their direction, contribute to the debate on the relative primacy of educational track versus family capital in shaping financial literacy among Moroccan youth.