Economic literacy

With its economics teaching programme – Iconomix – the SNB aims to promote an understanding of economic matters in Switzerland. Iconomix is aimed at teachers of economics and social studies at Swiss upper secondary schools.

Iconomix has three key focus areas:

Basic principles

One part of the Iconomix units conveys relatively clear and broadly applicable principles and concepts. They are helpful in understanding many economic situations, from everyday decisions any person is faced with to understanding key macroeconomic contexts.

You can read the full list about the 17 fundamental principles and concepts that Iconomix regards as important here.

Topical issues and challenges

In addition, Iconomix addresses topical issues and challenges such as digitalisation, population ageing and climate change, with a special focus on their economic components.

For each school year, Iconomix defines one focus topic. For a list of past focus topics, please refer to this page (available in German and French only).

Financial literacy

Another key focus area of Iconomix is basic financial literacy. This includes, among other things, aspects of personal finances such as handling money and using banking services. These are all core skills that young adults need today to be able to hold their own in everyday life and in the workplace.

Real world examples of financial literacy include:
  • knowing and understanding the concepts of compound interest, inflation and risk diversification;
  • being able to calculate a return on an investment and prepare a budget;
  • being motivated to apply this knowledge in everyday life;
  • being willing to seek information and advice, and having the confidence to do so.

Content guidelines

The content of Iconomix units is developed on the basis of up-to-date, academically proven facts. It is aligned with clear values and the current school of thought in economics.

Iconomix is open to new trends and findings, including them in the framework of its core product, the teaching units, and in the News section, where the latest updates on economics and education are published. They are also presented in the Tools & Links section, where external resources on economical topics are made available.