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Bourstad and FinÉcoLab: financial and economic education tools offered to schools by CIRANO

For the back-to-school season, CIRANO is offering teachers in high schools, CEGEPs and community colleges across Canada some highly stimulating financial education activities that have been enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of students over the years.

Teachers can use the FinÉcoLab educational game kit to introduce students to economic concepts related to markets and prices, individual preferences, and collective and individual choices. A FinÉcoLab game transforms the classroom into an experimental laboratory by involving students in a situation that reflects the interactions in which financial and economic choices are made. Financial and economic concepts are learned in a fun and effective way. FinÉcoLab games are available free of charge online (www.finecolab.com). The Autorité des marchés financiers is CIRANO's main partner for the FinÉcoLab games.

Introduction to stock market investing with the Bourstad Program!

CIRANO is also inviting high schools, CEGEPs and community colleges across Canada to sign up for the 2023-24 Bourstad Program, an initiative offering a range of learning activities and stock market simulations. This educational program aims to promote the acquisition of new knowledge in responsible investing and portfolio management.

Participating schools can organize private stock market simulations for their students at any time during the school year. They can also register their students for the 37th edition of the Bourstad Challenge, to be held from February 12 to April 12, 2024. To find out how schools can register for the 2023-24 Bourstad Program, visit www.bourstad.ca.

Bourstad simulations take place entirely online, on a state-of-the-art platform. In a Bourstad simulation, the participant assumes the role of investment advisor for a fictitious investor, while reacting to real market developments. The application also offers supervision features for teachers and those in charge of private simulations and the Bourstad Challenge in schools. Teachers and students taking part in the simulations benefit from rich, comprehensive and varied support.

"It is important to give priority to improving understanding of economic and financial concepts, particularly among young people in Quebec. Data collected in the Baromètre CIRANO 2022 reveals that Quebecers who don't know how to assess the level of risk associated with household debt are almost 7 times more likely to be concerned about economic and financial risks. This and other Barometer findings on economic issues highlight the need to raise Quebecers' level of economic and financial literacy.

The FinÉcoLab educational games and the Bourstad financial education program provide appropriate solutions to meet this requirement. These initiatives are perfectly aligned with CIRANO's mission, which is to facilitate the transmission of knowledge from the realm of theory to that of practice"

Nathalie de Marcellis-Warin, President and CEO of CIRANO

For more information on CIRANO's financial education activities, watch this video produced in preparation for CIRANO's 30th anniversary.

Following the 2023 Bourstad Challenge, a tribute ceremony was held at CIRANO on May 29 to congratulate the winners, under the honorary presidency of Odrée Ducharme, CFA, President of the Board of directors, CFA Montréal. The ceremony also saw the announcement of the six winners of the Autorité des marchés financiers' Special Financial Education Awards, each receiving a $500 scholarship. Candidates for these special prizes were invited to share their experiences and testify to the good or bad decisions they had made throughout the simulation, highlighting the lasting lessons they had learned.

Shortly after the end of the 2023 Bourstad Challenge, the jury, chaired by Cathy Sleiman, Senior Director, Eastern Canada, TD Direct Investing, deliberated and approved the list of winners of the 97 grand prizes and mentions of institutional excellence. These awards are accompanied by scholarships totalling $32,700.

Here are the names of the winners who were awarded a 1^st Grand Prize in the 2023 Bourstad Challenge, as well as the winners of the Autorité des marchés financiers' Special Financial Education Awards.

Portfolio management

• Maya Chagnon (Collège Bois-de-Boulogne)
• Jia Xin Chen (University of Waterloo)
• Yanis Khif (Université de Montréal)
• Georges Lantagne (Collège Bois-de-Boulogne)
• Alexa Philippe (Collège de L'Assomption)
• Rebekah Victoria Saint-Amour (Collège de L'Assomption)

Responsible investing

• Maverick Cordeau (Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe)
• Yanis Khif (Université de Montréal)
• Seyedehhasti Rezaeilalami (École secondaire internationale de Montréal)

Financial performance

• Nickolas Cloutier (Cégep Limoilou)
• Andrei Hulubas Barnia (Chateauguay QC)
• Matei Hulubas Barnia (Université de Montréal)
• Yves Langevin (Montréal QC)
• Harrish Pathmanathan (Collège Bois-de-Boulogne)
• Nathan Vaillancourt (Université du Québec à Montréal)
• Justin Vennes (École secondaire Marcellin-Champagnat)

Overall performance

• Shaanicka Fernando (Collège Bois-de-Boulogne)
• Yanis Khif (Université de Montréal)
• Georges Lantagne (Collège Bois-de-Boulogne)
• Chakib Malki (École secondaire internationale de Montréal)
• Lilia Qostali (École secondaire internationale de Montréal)
• Lucas Richard (Polytechnique Montréal)

Autorité des marchés financiers Special Awards for Financial Education

• Lina Alaoui (Collège Bois-de-Boulogne)
• Maria Alberga (Pensionnat du Saint-Nom-de-Marie)
• Christian Berliba (École secondaire internationale de Montréal)
• Mathis Cadieux (Collège Laval)
• Joël Forand (Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe)
• Evelyn Liu (École secondaire internationale de Montréal)

Congratulations to all the winners of grand prizes and mentions of institutional excellence in the 36^th edition of the Bourstad Challenge!

For more information

• Visit the Bourstad website www.bourstad.ca