For Module 3, conduct a literature search utilizing peer-reviewed journal articles, books, professional organization Web sites and articles, etc., to continue working on your program/intervention plan

MODULE 2 SLP

Elizabeth Davis

Trident International University

Module 2 SLP

Introduction

Over the past years, there has been cases of teens aged 13 and 19 becoming pregnant. This issue of teen pregnancy has been emerging over the past years. It is a serious issue, which must be addressed as early as possible. Many factors have been attributed to teen pregnancy. The major factors are socio-economic in nature. Most of the teens that get pregnant come from less fortunate families. People take advantage of their vulnerability and seek sexual favors from them so as to assist them in one way or another. Another major cause of teen pregnancy is lack of information pertaining to consequences of engaging in sex. Most of the teens that engage in sex are not aware of their activities. They indulge in sexual activities and find themselves pregnant in the long run. It is therefore important to adequately address the issue of teenage pregnancy. Although the rate of teenage pregnancy has been declining it is important to put more efforts to counter this emerging trend among the teens. This paper therefore seeks to highlight various strategies that will be used to reduce the rate of pregnancy among teenagers.

Program General Goal/Objective

The general goal of the program is to reduce the rate of teenage pregnancy among the youth aged 13 to 19 years old.

Specific objectives of the Program

Learning objective- To educate the youths aged 13 to 19 years old on the importance of avoiding sexual intercourse so as to avoid early pregnancies.

Behavioral objective- To come up with best behavioral strategies which will enable the youth aged 13 to 19 to abstain from, sexual activities.

Evidence-based Strategies of reducing the rate of teen pregnancy

There are various evidence-based strategies that have been shown effective in reducing the rate of early pregnancies among teens. One of the strategies that have been effective in reducing teen pregnancy is the advice and directions from parents. Parents play a significant role in upbringing of their children. Many teens have been able to heed what their parents have told them pertaining to avoiding indulging in sex. Most have the parents have counseling sessions for their children. The parents have always imposed strict guidelines in such a way that teens would fear engaging in sexual activities. Empirical findings also show that also show that learning institutions particularly schools have greatly contributed to decline in the rate of teen pregnancies. Many schools have counseling department where they give advice to adolescents. They are informed of the negative effects of teen pregnancies. This has helped to reduce the rate of adolescent pregnancies. They are asked to avoid sexual relations and focus on achieving their learning goals. The strategies employed by religious institutions such as Churches have also help to reduce the rate of teen pregnancies. These religious institutions discourage immoral behavior particularly indulging in sexual acts before marriage. Teens are told that it is not right to engage in sex before marriage. The religious institutions also have counseling session for the teens. During these sessions youth are discouraged from indulging in sexual acts. Most of the youth who have heeded to what they are told have always progressed well. Another strategy of reducing the rate of teenage pregnancies is ensuring pornographic content materials are out of reach of the teens. It is also important to ensure that teens do not access internet sites which contain pornographic materials. It is also important to empower children from the less fortunate families so that they do not engage in sexual activities as a means of earning income.

There are two main evidence-based strategies that I will use to implement my program or intervention. The first strategy is educating the teenagers. By educating the teenagers, they will be well informed and aware of consequences of engaging in sexual activities. This will significantly help in reducing the rate of teenage pregnancies. The second strategy is devising various behavioral techniques, which will help to reform the teens that have already engaged in sexual activities. The essence of this is to ensure there is a positive behavior change. This strategy is also very useful in reducing the rate of pregnancy among teenagers.

Work plan of reducing the rate of teen pregnancy

Works Cited

Boonstra, H. D. (2014). What is behind the declines in teen pregnancy rates?. Guttmacher Policy Review, 17(3), 15-21.

Hall, K. S., Sales, J. M., Komro, K. A., & Santelli, J. (2016). The state of sex education in the United States. The Journal of adolescent health: official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine, 58(6), 595.

Hamilton, B. E., & Mathews, T. J. (2016). Continued declines in teen births in the United States, 2015. US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.