TEENAGE PREGNANCY RATES AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL GIRLS IN ONITSHA UGBO ANIOCHA NORTH LGA DELTA STATE
Abstract
The incidence of adolescent pregnancy among secondary school girls in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State, was investigated in this study. The study’s entire population is 200 secondary school teachers from Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA in Delta State.
The researcher collected data using questionnaires as the instrument. This study used a descriptive survey research approach. The survey included 133 respondents who were made principals, vice principals, administration, senior staff, and junior employees. The acquired data was organized into tables and evaluated using simple percentages and frequencies.
chapter One
Introduction
The study’s context
Teenage refers to both male and female adolescents aged thirteen to nineteen (13-19years). Such teenagers are not considered mature in American society. Although they appear to be adults biologically, they engage in sexual intercourse with individuals of the opposite sex. This activity presents a significant challenge to health services since sex at this young age exposes them to a variety of hazards, including teenage pregnancy.
This was confirmed by Awake (1990), when the publisher stated that moral degradation among our youths is reaching worrisome proportions in Nigeria today, with crime rates rising by leaps and bounds day after day, month after month, and year after year.
Teenage pregnancy has become a severe public health problem, particularly in underdeveloped nations, and studies have revealed that it is on the rise. According to research, teen pregnancy is a health issue in industrialized countries such as the United States.
Corry and Cray (1997) agreed that schools should educate health education as well as highlight contemporary issues such as sexually transmitted diseases, which are often followed by pregnancy among teenagers. The role of school and home in sex education has long been a source of contention. Mooney (1975) and Fakunle (1986) conducted a study that concluded that teens learn about sex via peers and the media, and that much of the information they receive is inadequate and false. (1991, Oladapo and Akintayo).
Sex is romanticized in books, television shows, and films. This places additional responsibility on young people to maintain a level of behavior that will provide them the most enjoyment today and in the future. Adolescent behavior standards should be established at home. 1979, Turner.
Mooney (1975), commenting on the roles of both schools and parents, stated that the fundamental job of parents is to set behavioral limitations for their own children. Fakunle (1986) went on to say that in the early phases of personality development, sexual knowledge, understanding how things function, and completely enjoying sexual changes, should be supported at home. According to Marjorie and Thomas (1979), teenage pregnancy and the inevitable abortion have societal consequences.
It is unusual in some societies to attach a terrible stigma to girls who are pregnant or have likely committed abortions, such girls and their families are usually the talk of the town by society, the girls are sometimes ridiculed, characterized, and insulted by people around them and comrades at schools, teachers do not look at them with favor, nearly one million of these adolescents aged 15-19years become pregnant in the United States yearly and a20,000 pregnancy occurs
According to Barbana (1988), adolescence is a time when teens want structure as well as the opportunity to become more independent. They require the ability to foresee their futures as well as the ability to create reasonable goals for their own progress.
Technically, a teen pregnancy occurs when a woman under the age of twenty becomes pregnant, but in the United States, the word commonly refers to girls under the age of 18. Individual, familiar, and social factors contribute to the problem of teenage pregnancy and child bearing, including but not limited to culture, religion, cultural value and belief, law, education, economic circumstances, a lack of support structures such as access to health care, contraception, and other resources, and mental and emotional well-being condom (2002).
In affluent countries, data supporting teen pregnancy as a social issue include lower educational levels, higher rates of poverty, and other negative ‘life outcomes’ in children of teenage mothers.
Teenage pregnancy is frequently outside of marriage in developed countries, and as a result, it bears a social stigma in many communities and countries. Some adolescent pregnancies in affluent countries occur outside of marriage, which carries a social shame in many communities and countries.
Some adolescent pregnancies arise as a result of young women’s sexual inexperience, as well as an inadequate understanding of their reproductive issues. Access to contraception is required to prevent unintended teenage pregnancies and births. Although not all adolescent pregnancies are unplanned, a survey of 589 pregnant Western Australian Adolescents (12-17) found that 17% began that way (Corkindale, 2002).
Government restrictions and social hypocritical criticism of adolescent sexuality and contraception usage have made it difficult for adolescents to obtain information and access informative services. On the one hand, there is a desire to prevent sexual intercourse among young unmarried adolescents, with the resulting moral structural segregation of boys and girls, and the threat of punishment if found.
On the other hand, there is a desire to prevent the consequences, such as the spread of AIDS, unwanted pregnancies, and emotional trauma, if intercourse does occur. The award is a census of sexual health information and services that are effective, safe, and geared at adolescents. 2002 (Corkindale)
1.2. THE PROBLEM’S STATEMENT
Teenage pregnancy is on the rise at an alarming rate among female students in Nigeria, causing widespread concern among most individuals, families, and society. It is also one of the severe societal health issues that is gradually getting traction and spreading throughout the entire planet.
According to studies, teenagers are bound to contribute to this health issue. As a result, the purpose of this study is to look into the reasons and prevalence of adolescent pregnancy among secondary school female students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State. This will go a long way toward exposing these students to information that will allow them to make educated decisions regarding their social health.
The study’s objective
To determine the cause of the high prevalence of teenage pregnancy among female secondary school students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State.
To determine if teenage pregnancy is caused by a broken home or divorce among secondary school female students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State.
To determine whether sex education is a factor in the occurrence of adolescent pregnancy among secondary school female students in Onitsha, Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State.
Hypotheses for research
The researcher developed the following research hypotheses in order to successfully complete the study:
H0: There is no cause of the high prevalence of adolescent pregnancy among female secondary school students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State.
H1: There is a cause of the prevalence of adolescent pregnancy among female secondary school students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State.
H02: Lack of sex education is not the cause of the high prevalence of adolescent pregnancy among secondary school female students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State.
H2: The frequency of teenage pregnancy among secondary school female students in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State, is caused by a lack of sex education.
The study’s importance
This study will give parents with important information on how to educate their children and solve their sexual health and reproductive concerns. Furthermore, the health counselor may obtain sufficient factual information in order to develop relevant information with adolescent clients and the community in order to minimize teen pregnancy in secondary schools.
The study’s scope and limitations
The study’s focus includes the prevalence of adolescent pregnancy among secondary school girls in Onitsha Ugbo Aniocha North LGA, Delta State. The researcher comes upon a constraint that limits the scope of the investigation;
a) RESEARCH MATERIAL AVAILABILITY: The researcher’s research material is insufficient, restricting the scope of the investigation.
b) TIME: The study’s time frame does not allow for broader coverage because the researcher must balance other academic activities and examinations with the study.
1.7 TERMS DEFINITION
Adolescence is a time of life that lasts roughly 11 to 19 years, commencing with the introduction of secondary sex characteristics and ending with the stop of somatic growth.
Teenagers range in age from 13 to 19 years.
Puberty is the age of adolescence when secondary sex traits, such as breasts and public hair, develop.
When a teenager becomes pregnant, this is referred to as a teen pregnancy.
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TEENAGE PREGNANCY RATES AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL GIRLS IN ONITSHA UGBO ANIOCHA NORTH LGA DELTA STATE