Teen Pregnancy

           

Did you know that thirty-one teenage girls become pregnant each day in Indiana?  

Did you know that we, as tax payers, pay billions of dollars each year to support these teen moms? (Cockrum). Over the past several years it appears that a trend has begun among teenage girls. Everyday we seem to find out that someone we are close to or that we know will become a mother. No one knows for sure why this trend is occurring, but it may be due to a lack of education in our communities and schools. While many people believe that there are several other ways to solve this problem, I believe that education is the only way to teach a lesson.

            In many of our schools and communities, the idea of abstinence is being taught to students. In Jackson, Mississippi, however, a young mother of seven is urging law makers to pass a sex education law that goes beyond teaching abstinence. Lori Roberts, who had given birth to three children before the age of eighteen, stated that she believes that the choices she made when it came to sex would have been wiser if she would have been educated on the matter in school (“House”). While many politicians find this issue to be a controversial one, someone has to be willing to educate students about the consequences that come with such actions. Lori Robert’s case is just one of the many examples that proves the importance of education beyond just abstinence.  

One of Indiana’s own well-known health clinics is on the brink of loosing funding. About a year ago Planned Parenthood of Indiana was forced to close down six health centers around the state due to changes in the distribution of federal funds in Indiana (Cockrum). As a result patients are now not able to receive proper care or education on their reproductive conditions, and they have nowhere else to go since no one else will step in and help. Without education in centers such as Planned Parenthood, we will continue to see an increase in the number of teen pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, and abortions.  

I’m aware that many people believe that whether teenagers are educated more on the subject of teen pregnancy and sex that they will still do as they please. While this may be true, it is hard to tell how much of an impact you may have on a person based on something that you told or taught them. I can personally say that receiving information on subjects such as this definitely opens your eyes to what is happening in your community and that the more you know, the more you make your decisions more wisely.

As teen pregnancy continues to rise, more should be done as far as sexual education is concerned. Education is the only way that we can ensure that students are aware of the information, but just choose not to use the information to their advantage. Teaching teenagers more about teen pregnancy and making them aware of the risks that follow will help to lower the teen pregnancy rates. As Albert Einstein once said, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school.”

                                                            Work Cited      

Cockrum, Betty. “Cuts would only hurt Hoosiers’ health”. Indystar.com. Indystar.com, 8 

            Jan 2011.Web. 3 Feb 2011    

“Help for troubled teens” Familyfirstaid.org. Familyfirstaid.org, nd. Web. 7 Feb 2011

“House hearing focuses on sex education”. Picayuneitem.com. Associated Press, 14 Jan 

            2011. Web. 3 Feb 2011