K&H: K&H’s financial championship sets record after record

Since its inception fifteen years ago, the K&H Vigyázz, széll, pénz! competition has become an indispensable player in the Hungarian educational palette. “We believe that one of the keys to a sustainable future lies in conscious financial decisions, the foundations of which should be laid at a young age. That is why we are committed to the financial education of young people, so that a culture of forward thinking and savings can be developed at an early age.” – said Nóra Voljč Horváth Magyary, Managing Director of Communications at K&H, about the background of the competition.

Describing the spectacular results of the competition, he added: “While only 150 teams entered the world of finance at the start of 2010/2011, this season 3,903 teams have already tested their skills. This also means that the number of teams has increased twenty-sixfold in the more than one and a half decade history of the competition series. Not to mention that this spectacular development is not just a statistical figure, but also evidence of a generational change: since the start of the program, a total of 29,325 teams and 120,417 students have participated in the K&H competition series, meaning that this is how many have started on the path of conscious management.”

Every age group has done their bit

​The dynamics of growth can be seen in every age group, but the activity of the youngest is especially pleasing. The 3-4. In the 1st grade age group, the number of teams jumped from 371 last year to 501 this year, which means that 2,088 young students are now playfully getting to know the world of money. The largest camp continues to be made up of high school students in grades 9-11, where a total of 6,752 students in 1,663 teams are fighting for the championship title. The intermediate age groups also excelled: 823 teams registered for the competition in grades 5-6 and 916 teams registered for the competition in grades 7-8, which means a total of more than 7,300 participants in this segment.

​​The national coverage and social embeddedness of the competition also reached another milestone. Since the start of the program, students from a total of 907 Hungarian settlements have joined the struggle, and this year 283 smaller and larger settlements, including villages, cities and county seats and Budapest are represented. The commitment of educational institutions is demonstrated by the fact that 542 schools – including 154 vocational schools – opened their doors to financial education this school year.

Recognition for teachers and schools

Behind the huge interest, in addition to the thirst for knowledge, there is also the extremely motivating award, which this year also holds valuable awards for all age groups. However, K&H rewards not only the children, but also the communities and educators who support them. After the closing of entries, special awards have already been awarded, the aim of which is to recognize outstanding pedagogical work and school cooperation.

The special award for the teacher who prepared the most students in the category of schools with fewer than 400 students was won by Terézia Urbán Medvéné, a teacher at the Szent József Catholic Electronics Technical School, High School and Dormitory in Jászapáti, who entered 96% of her students into the competition. In the category of institutions with more than 401 students, Mihályné Szántó, a teacher at the Petőfi Street Primary School in Békéscsaba, received recognition, with a participation rate of 99%.

The special award for the school that entered the most students among institutions with fewer than 400 students was won by the Encsencs–Peneszlek–Nyírvasvár Primary School, where 78% of the students entered the competition. In the category of schools with over 401 students, the Kazinczy Ferenc Elementary School in Békéscsaba proved to be the most successful, with a 75% registration rate.

This year, the outstanding activity of schools in disadvantaged areas deserves special attention: a total of 82 educational institutions from disadvantaged settlements joined the competition. In response to the extraordinary interest, K&H also awarded the special prize originally announced in this round in two categories, to those schools with fewer than 400 students and those with more than 401 students that registered the most students for the competition in relation to the number of students in the institution. Among the institutions with fewer than 400 students, the Szent László Catholic Primary School and Kindergarten in Géderlak received recognition, where 77% of the students took part in the competition, while in the case of institutions with more than 401 students, the Kántor Mihály Primary School in Cigánd proved to be the most successful.