Mini Summary
The article linked in this post dives into a few pertinent issues related to our FAVORITE topic….TEEN PREGNANCY! The writer examines the “cost” of teen pregnancy, being education in this case. According to the article, statistics indicate “only 40% of teen moms…finish high school” and only “23 percent earn a GED”. Less teen moms attend institutions of high education. Due to less education, thus decreasing the chances of a teen mom obtaining jobs with good benefits and a reasonable income, teen moms will often pass their own hardships to their children. Thus some teen moms create a cycle of early pregnancy and poverty for future generations. The article indicated daughters of teen moms are “three times’ more likely to become teen moms.
This article did strike a personal chord with me. My mother became a teen mom when she gave birth to me at 16. She did drop out of high school, but she did get a GED [matching up with some of the statistics in this article]. However, she did go to college and obtained a four year degree. Unlike my mom, I did not become a teen mom. According to the article and statistically speaking, I was three times more likely to become a teen mom, but I didn't!
Obviously many teen pregnancies are occurring for a number of factors including a lack of or an incorrect use of contraceptives. However, I would like to explore what factors may contribute to females who statistically are at a higher risk for becoming teen moms, avoiding that expectation or NOT becoming teen moms. What are your thoughts?
Ashley B.
For many women, a motivation to avoid a statistic's expectation of becoming a teen mom is seeing the hardships it causes. Seeing a parent work long hours with little free time and feeling the constrains of a low income may provide a step to avoiding teen pregnancy.
ReplyDeleteA parent's discussion about sex with her or his teenager may also prevent an unplanned pregnancy. Availability of contraceptives may also aid in the avoidance of an unplanned pregnancy while a discussion about abstinence may aid in prolonging a teenager's first sexual experience.
::Maura B.
Most Teen Mom’s have made it their duty to educate and remind their children of the difficulties of becoming a teen parent. Growing up with a parent that can “teach you from experience” helps prevent the chances of one (a higher risk female) becoming pregnant. According to statistics most teen moms do not graduate from high school, which can in fact lead to a life full of struggle to make ends meat. Witnessing your parents struggle to keep a roof over their head can create a certain determination to steer away from that type of lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteThe children of teen parents grew up knowing that their parents did not get a chance to finish high school and were forced to enter adulthood. This may help encourage children to wait a while before having a child of their own.
~Simone Mc
When interpreting this data one must consider the source and time. The majority of data on teen pregnancy and motherhood was collected before either MTV show on teenage mothers ran.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the popularity of Sixteen and Pregnant as well as Teen Mom has created a buzz in MTV's target audience (teenagers) that could be positive in the long run. Some critics have said that Teen Mom has glamorized teen pregnancy and that some teenagers try to get pregnant for a chance to be on the show. In the short run we can observe this behavior as being rash and capitalizing on (maybe) fifteen minutes of fame. However, as Teen Mom grows in popularity and as MTV continues to provide resources, I have some hope that teenagers will begin to view pregnancy as a serious responsibility and a lifetime commitment.
Personally, I do not believe abstinence-only education is doing America's teenagers any good. We, as a country, need to unite in the fact that teens have sex and if they're going to do it then they should do it right - with the pill, the ring, male condoms, female condoms, with whichever birth control method is most convenient and comfortable for the partners.
Nonetheless, it is still a burden to be making all these decisions in the privacy of a relationship without parental consent; teens need to talk to their parents and parents need to listen and support their offspring whether or not it is in the decision to chose a method of birth control for safe sex or the difficult conversation about becoming a parent before turning twenty.
-Claire L.