Pregnant teenagers should be able to openly discuss their options as parents and receive advice on how to continue their education. When parents dropout of high school to care for their children they are essentially hurting them in the long run. Education is the most important component of prevention, and that is why the uneducated portions of America are at such a high risk. When parents are uneducated they pass that onto their children and that can put the children at risk for repeating the same cycle. The CDC discusses the long term impact of dropping out of school and the effects it has on the child, they state that “the children of teenage mothers are more likely to have lower school achievement and to drop out of high school, have more health problems, be incarcerated at some time during adolescence, give birth as a teenager, and face unemployment as a young adult,” (About Teen Pregnancy, 2016). Statistically, the majority of teenage parents are unable to seek higher education and go straight to the work force so they are able to support their family. Because they did not attend college or pass high school their options are limited and the amount they are able to make is drastically lower than if they were to finish their education. That is why in preventing teen pregnancy it is important to look at the long term view instead of the short …show more content…
It is important, not only to turn our attention to the teenagers who are at risk for pregnancy now, but to also look at teenagers who have already conceived. If our community is able to assist those young parents in continuing their education and helping with day care while they attend school it could stop the repeating cycle. If these teens are able to get their high school diploma and go to college to start a career they can provide their children with the education that they need to make the right choices in the future. Alabama needs to make a effort to support teen parents and help them improve their quality of life so that they can stop the repeated cycle of teen