New financial literacy game blends fiscal and physical fitness

04.27.09
By Credit.com

Students are learning financial strategies in an unusual venue – a basketball court or sports field – while playing a new sports game called Budgetball. Combining fiscal strategy and physical play, the game is designed to help students learn about debt, savings, interest, and taxes in a fast-paced game that requires strategy and skill.

Budgetball is played between two teams of 6–10 people on an area roughly the size of a basketball court. Teams score points by passing a volleyball to a player in the end zone, while strategically managing "Budgetbucks" which may be borrowed, earned, or spent by taking "advantages" such as an extra offensive player or by making team "sacrifices" like wearing oven mitts during play. Winners must carefully manage debt and savings to gain sufficient advantage over their opponents and score more points. 

Budgetball was created by the National Academy of Public Administration in partnership with Parsons The New School for Design and Area/Code, and is funded by a grant from the Peter G. Peterson Foundation. A recent Budgetball tournament at Philander Smith College drew some 80 participants and 100 spectators. That was followed by the first campus-wide Budgetball Tournament, held at the University of Miami in April 2009.

"Budgetball strips away the complicated jargon and confusing details of the federal budget by turning 'fiscal' into 'physical," said National Academy President Jennifer L. Dorn. She is also quoted on Budgetball website as saying, "If 'extreme accounting' were a sport, it would be Budgetball."

"Students are being faced with tough financial decisions, including rising debt and taxes, as well as increasing healthcare costs," says credit expert Gerri Detweiler. "Budgetball is a smart way to help them learn how to quickly evaluate their choices and make those hard decisions in play, rather than by making mistakes with their hard-earned money."

A demonstration of the game, as well as more information on upcoming events, can be found at BudgetBall.org.

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Budgetball is a smart way to help students learn about debt, savings, interest and taxes.