By: Luke Bush
Every year around September, the stock market game kicks off. The stock market game is a fictional game where students invest fake money in real stocks. They then sell, trade, or keep stocks until the end of the year and hope their choices are fruitful. Some win big, but some do not win at all. At Oak Grove in Coach Lang’s marketing class, this game is played as part of a course requirement. But what many do not realize is this game isn’t just being played at OGHS, but is a national competition in which thousands of students participate.
“We have been playing for about five years,” Coach Lang said. “But I believe the game has been going on for about ten or twelve years.” Many do not realize that the game does not end locally. There are three levels: national, state, and regional. If a team comes in the top fifty in a region, that team goes to state. Oak Grove is considered to be a part of the southeast region. At the national level, the money becomes real, as actual money and prizes are awarded to winners.
The stock market game is simple to play and the teams are made up of five people. One person, who is picked as the leader, must create an account for the game and then the team decides what stocks would be a good choice to purchase. Each team is given a set amount of money and as the game continues, they are allowed to sell or trade until the end of the year. Some think it is better to buy stocks and leave them alone, while others believe it is better to sell and trade a stock over and over until the desired result is acheived. “Just make sure not to invest all of your money in one type of product, like electronics,” Coach Lang advised. “It is better to invest in different things like, some in electronics, some in food. That way, if one part of the market is doing badly, you will still have a shot with the others.”
“It is a very simple game that many do not know about. The purpose is not just to get students interested in the stock market, but also to get them involved and to really use what they learned in school. The students who take the time to do the math and really see which stocks are best are proven to have higher scores on the ACT,” Coach Lang said.
