I read this exert in an article today:
"Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed there were 7.8 conceptions per 1,000 girls aged under 16 in 2006, rising to 8.3 per 1,000 girls in 2007. The actual number of pregnancies in girls aged under 16 increased from 7,826 in 2006 to 8,196 in 2007. Nearly three-quarters of these pregnancies were in 15-year-old girls. And the overall pregnancy rate among under-18s in England and Wales has risen for the first time since 2002. The under-18 conception rate increased from 40.9 per 1,000 women in 2006 to 41.9 in 2007. The Government has pledged to halve teenage pregnancy rates among girls under 18 by half by next year but is widely expected to miss that target."
What's changed in the last few years? Well the government decided to teach oral sex as a safe alternative to full sexual intercourse, then they added teaching about gay sex, and then they claim that the reason pregnancies have increased is because of a lack of teaching on contraceptive use. I don't know about your own experience but I know that when I graduated high school every student in my class had been taught how to use a condom - surely it's impossible to claim they don't know how?
I wonder if the actual reason for the increase in teenage pregnancy is the increase in teaching about sex in all it's various forms? Could this be the case? Maybe instead of teaching about the freedom of sex we should talk about the responsibilities and consequences, of sex instead?
Michael