By By Tracy L. Brady
Record reporter
Even the most knowledgeable investors and traders meandered through the stock market this spring as the country recovered from a recession and thoughts of Enron loomed large, but a team of students from Madison overcame such obstacles and proved to be successful playing the market.
Liberty Middle School seventh grade Stock Market Simulation (SMS) Team 17 recently placed third in the region for the 2002 spring semester. The team, sponsored by seventh grade LMS teacher Rhonda Durrett, received SMS T-shirts and certificates of recognition for their achievement. Team members include: Ian Wheeler, Anna Smith, Kyleen Kirkland, Jana Watts, Shondrell Thompson, Latrisa Holden, and J.P. Creekmore. Students also received a crisp, new two-dollar bill from Durrett as an extra incentive.
According to the teammates, stock choices were made based on interest in companies popular among teens like Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Sony. Students learned how to buy and sell stocks, incorporate math skills, work as a team, and follow stock reports through the exercise.
"It was a real experience without real debt," Kirkland said.
SMS is an educational tool used to give students hands-on experiences in the world of economics, finance, current events, math, social studies, and technology. To date, 17 states and 20,000 teams per semester use SMS, amounting to approximately 200,000 students. It is the only stock market simulation endorsed by the Alabama Council on Economic Education based on its successful results in economic education and financial literacy.
The average portfolio value for the Alabama SMS this spring was $100,665-which is a +.665 percent return. Compared to the S&P 500, which fell -.647 percent, the state average over performed the market by about 1.80 percent.
For more information on SMS, visit www.alabamasms.com.