Teenage Mothers In High School

The end result of pregnant teen moms causes graduation rates to decrease. Only about two-thirds of children born to teen mothers earn a high school diploma, compared to

Girls who gave birth while still in high school only 38% of them graduate. The reason the rest of them drop out is since they are forced to work in order to support their child. Nearly all cannot manage parenthood, school, work without family or friends help. With teenage mothers “Their children showed reduced educational attainment, had more emotional and behavioral problems, were at increased risk of maltreatment or harm, and showed higher rates of illness, accidents and injuries.” (Dennison P. 6) Just in the state of Texas, in 2012, there were 44 births per 1,000 girls’ state wide. Nationwide 50% of pregnancies are accidental in 2006. Teen parents also are a financial load to society, According to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, in 2004, all together taxpayers paid more than eight billion dollars to help support health cares designed to help the 420,000 teenage mothers who gave birth in that year. “results from economic analyses suggest that implementing evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs, expanding access to Medicaid family planning services, and utilizing mass media campaigns to promote safe sex may reduce teen pregnancy and save taxpayer dollars.” (Without the help of drugs like Plan B or any type of birth control, a large amount of teenage girls will become unplanned mothers, making more of a financial burden to society.

Fact: Teenage mothers are more likely to drop out of school and only about one-third obtain a high school diploma.

    Dating back to the early 2000’s, over 1,000,000 teens a year have had children during high school (Source A). Teenagers are depending on others to rely on their children and not the effect of their education and their future career. As the years tick by, the teen pregnancy rate has reduced a solid 9%; becoming the lowest rate in over a hundred years (Source A). Since teen pregnancy has dropped and the amount of tax dollars have increased, the fight to find the time and place for their children's own education, is still a matter of struggles (Source

At the age of 16 I had my son Ezikel, he is now six years old and is a wild, exciting, creative young boy he is my biggest blessing. When I found out I was going to have a child at such a young age I had one thing on my mind and that was “I refuse to be a statistic” I went on to find a high school for teen moms; Florence Crittenton High School, I was determined to graduate high school and move on to college. I completed High School in 2011 and got a scholarship I went to CCD but I felt it wasn’t quick enough for me , I felt as if I had to rush and get a career to support me and my son. I then went to working dead end jobs I felt like a failure, this is not what I planned on for my post high school life, I felt ashamed and I had let my son down.

The most reliable estimates by a recent study suggest that “giving birth as a teen is associated with a decline in the probability of graduating from high school (-0.08) and a reduction in income and total wages of $2,200 to $2,400.” It is important to note that often, this decreased economic capacity is paired with far more demands on the mother’s income, making the economic effects even more devastating. Teenage childbearing does not only create problems for the mother; using the same method as the previous paper (comparing teen couples who underwent a miscarriage against those who had a live birth), Fletcher and Wolfe determined that teenage fatherhood reduces the likelihood of obtaining a high school diploma by 15%, which is has lifetime economic effects (Fletcher and Wolfe "The Effects of Teenage Fatherhood on Young Adult Outcomes" 11).

More interestingly, however, is how being a teenage parent effects the mother education wise. According to teenhelp.com, 50% of teenage mothers ages 15-19 get a high school diploma, and only 38% of teenage mothers ages 15-17 end up with a high school diploma. Then by age 30, only 1.5% of women who had a pregnancy(s) as a teenager end up achieving a college degree (Teen Pregnancy Statistics, 2015). Both those numbers are scary to think about, considering it is proven that people who get better education generally are more successful and well off. Then, thenationalcampaign.org points out facts

It helps mothers get their diploma.The national campaign said that only half of teenage mothers get their diploma. What is good about this program is that the mothers can come to school drop off their kid(or kids),and head off to class. According to the national campaign to prevent teen and unplanned pregnancy nearly 33.3% of teenage girls who dropped out of school said it was because of pregnancy.

At 18, I was your average high school student. I participated in marching band, took a few advanced courses and enjoyed the fellowship of friends. A blooming teenager with high hopes of attending the University of Alabama at Birmingham to obtain my degree in nursing. However, the summer following my graduation, I discovered that I was pregnant. Understandably shocked by this unexpected circumstance, I placed my dreams of attending UAB on hold.

When I was 17 I found out that I was pregnant with my son Tyrese it was a really shocking moment for me .when I had my son and when I held him for the first time I knew I couldn’t give up on school because my mother motivated me to stay in school when I thought I couldn’t do it but it’s not just about me because I have to make a better life situation for him and for me as an young adult.

When a young mom is called a h*e it expressed that she has held many relationships and all included sex which got her pregnant. This is not true in many cases, because many girls get pregnant with having sex for the first time and many only have one boyfriend before becoming pregnant. The stereotype of declaring a teen mom as a drop out automatically is also false and is a label that people state to make them feel like they know everything right away. On the website Dosomething, studies show 50% of teen moms would drop out and never make it but would instead join a GED club making (3). This however, is true but then the question is what happens to the other 50%?

Not only will birth control decrease risk for disease and teen pregnancy, it will increase the rate of teens receiving a high school diploma. Teenage girls are more at risk of dropping out if they become pregnant; however, if they had birth control, a higher quantity would not get pregnant and drop out. Saras Chung, author of “New Study Links Teen Pregnancy and Dropout, Spotlight Solutions,” asserts, “Teen pregnancy and high school dropouts are linked.” This expert opinion displays that vital consequences are linked to teen pregnancy. Chung also listed some statistics in the same article. She affirms, “One in three teen mothers earned neither a diploma nor a GED” (Chung). Some teenage mothers do not go on

I never thought having unprotected sex would lead to a teen pregnancy. However, I was wrong. Being young, immature, and thinking I was invincible led me to becoming a teenage mother. The disbelief came first, followed quickly by panic, before the realization and acceptance arrived. I had sex and I had to be mature and deal with the consequences and grow up faster than most teenagers. The days of my carefree teen life are now behind me as I tend to my eight month old son’s every need.

Teen pregnancy is an epidemic that has swept our nation for many years. It can alter the lives of teenagers in extreme measures. It is almost normal to see a teenager with a baby in today’s society. Getting pregnant while you’re a teen will definitely cause you to have to change your life style to accompany a child. This could mean not going to school or potentially dropping out of school permanently. Teen pregnancy will have a negative effect on the education of the teenager because it will force them to be committed full time to the concerns and needs of the child.

Teen mothers are more likely to drop out of high school than non-pregnant teen girls. Most teenagers that become pregnant end up dropping out of high school or college and most likely don’t finish school. For example the average college graduating student makes more than the average high school dropout. Only 34% of teen mothers that don’t finish out school don’t get to receive their diploma of GED. Sadly less than two percent of teen mother drop outs get their college degree by age 30. The average teen mother drop out costs the nation about $260,000 in taxes and lost earnings that they have to pay back to the schools (Americas Promise Alliance). From 1991 and 2010 taxpayers have paid a total of 4.1 billion over that period (Tulsa World). The average teen mother usually drops out of high school because they cannot balance taking care of their child and trying to keep up with school work. They normally don’t go back to finish their education. Teen mom drop outs continue to hurt the economy. As a result for them not going to school it sets them up to not have a future job.