Teenage Pregnancies: The Need for Multifaceted Intervention Strategies - Essay Sample

Introduction

South Africa and the world at large have been experiencing the challenge of teenage pregnancies. Therefore there is a need for the concerned parties to come up with intervening means to prevent the unintended pregnancies that cut short the childhoods of the people involved. To win the battle, there is a need for multifaceted intervention strategies that will enable the persons involved to win the battle and reduce the rates at which the teenagers are getting unintentionally pregnant. This being so, there is a need for concentrated efforts towards the teenagers' sexual health and enabling them to be more aware of the steps they can make to ensure that they stay away from unintentional pregnancies (Davids, Kredo & Matthews, 2020). For example, abstinence from sex should be encouraged until they are at an age where they can take charge of their sexual health or take care of the pregnancies. Additionally, for those that are already sexually active, there is a need for the introduction of contraceptives and family planning lessons in school, as well as the services so that the rates of unintended pregnancies are drastically reduced.

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Female Leadership, Parental Non-involvement, Teenage Pregnancy and Poverty Impact on the Underperformance of Learners in Further Education and Training

There have been efforts and research towards establishing the reasons behind the underperformance of learners in their studies. The main area of focus in South Africa has been on the school management teams (SMTs), whereby their influence and the role they play in the performance or underperformance of the learners have been discussed at lengths. Potigieter & Zuma (2019) researched the matter by investigating two schools to see the role of SMTs in the educational levels covered under Further Education and Training. They established that the SMTs were directly linked to the underperformance of the students under their structures and that the underperformance was due to several reasons some of which include mismanagement of funds meant for the development of the learning centers or the adverse environments created through reduced infrastructure and facilities in the learning environments leading to lack of motivation and therefore underperformance in academics. Additionally, factors such as the lack of parental involvement in the students' studies, early pregnancies, and the excessive poverty levels experienced in the areas had a direct link to the underperformance.

Awareness about Consequence of Teenage Pregnancy

Siddharth and Kirubamani (2019) intimate that traditional practices in countries like India, where teenage pregnancies are prevalent, are to blame. When one is at the adolescent stage, pregnancy poses a threat to both the mother and fetus that they are carrying. However, not all acknowledge the existence of complications when one gets pregnant when they are still teenagers, and several factors are to blame for this reality. Besides traditional factors that encourage teenage pregnancy remaining silent on the social scourge, factors such as educational status, whereby the less educated members are unable to comprehend the science behind the complications that come with teenage pregnancies, are also mentioned. Poverty levels also play a critical role in the acceptance of the social issue since the poorer members of the society are unable to do much concerning addressing the matter, despite their willingness to fight it. Finally, the types of families which the teenagers come from matter, since with the caste system still being subtly present in Indian society, there are families where the girls are likelier to be pregnant (lower caste) than the others (higher caste).

References

Davids, E. L., Kredo, T., & Mathews, C. (2020). Interventions for preventing unintended pregnancies among adolescents. SAMJ South African Medical Journal, 110(1), 7+. Retrieved from https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A616527422/AONE?u=nysl_me_moncol&sid=AONE&xid=ead0a1ec

Potgieter, C., & Zuma, N. (2019). Female leadership, parental non-involvement, teenage pregnancy, and poverty impact on the underperformance of learners in further education and training. HTS Teologiese Studies, 75(4), NA. Retrieved from https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A608571507/AONE?u=nysl_me_moncol&sid=AONE&xid=8c1482c4

Siddharth, A. R., & Kirubamani, N. H. (2019). Awareness about the Consequence of Teenage Pregnancy. Journal of Evolution of Medical and Dental Sciences, 8(34), 2672+. Retrieved from https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A602004620/AONE?u=nysl_me_moncol&sid=AONE&xid=b0874102