Teen Pregnancy Rate And The Dropout Rate

Within the past 20 years dropout rates have become a worldwide pandemic. Not to mention the ripples that follow that. These ripples include a higher percentage of the populous under the poverty line, with could then result in a global impact. This creates a serious problem, for not only the United States, but the rest of the world as the world economy is a reflection of our own. With that said, how will the teen pregnancy rates affect the dropout percentage? And how will informing the populous about America’s teen pregnancy issue lower the percentage of dropouts in American Schooling.
In 2011, a total of 329,797 babies were born to teenagers of the ages from fifteen to nineteen, with “a live birth rate of 31.3 per 1,000 women in this age group.” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]) This becomes a record low within this age group, and a drop from “8% from 2010. Birth rates fell 11% for women aged 15–17 years, and 7% for women aged 18–19 years.” (CDC) This drop is acceptable but it’s not something to rely on, as all of this depends how sexually active those teens are, there may theoretically be a birth rate to jump up to fifty percent. Additionally, research by both Claus C Pörtner and D. Mark Anderson, who are both respectable professors in the University of Washington’s economic department, have established that “increasing the minimum drop out age leads to higher income, better health, higher self-reported happiness, [and] less crime” (Lochner and Moretti; Oreopoulos; Black, Devereux and Salvanes; Anderson) If the only outcome is something positive, why has it not been changed? Some would say that it is all theoretical and untrustworthy. Yet it has still not been addressed. Another possible cause to this is the ne...

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...sex. Furthermore, none of these programs showed promise in the delaying of sexual initiation among youth enrolled in these programs. Additionally, none of the programs showed promise in obtaining factual data to conclude that abstinence can reduce other sexual risk-taking behaviors among participants. More specifically, a “2003 Pennsylvania evaluation found that the state-sponsored programs were largely ineffective in delaying sexual onset or promoting skills and attitudes consistent with sexual abstinence. Arizona and Kansas had similar findings of no change in behaviors. A 2004 evaluation from Texas found no significant changes in the percentage of students who pledged not to have sex until marriage. As in two other studies, the Texas analysis revealed that the percentage of students who reported having engaged in sexual intercourse increased for nearly all ages.”