This unit focuses on some of the attitudes teenage mothers from lower socio-economic strata have toward sex and contraceptives. I try to highlight some of the feelings and attitudes the teenage mothers have shared and some of the difficulties they encounter in their daily lives. How the norms of their particular sub-culture influence their behavior in general and specifically in the sexual area. How there seems to be a lack of awareness of cause and effect of sexually active teenagers and the ever increasing number of teenage pregnancy. The questionnaire is developed to be used during the initial weeks of school, in order to generate the sharing of ideas and feelings about sex and sexuality. Hopefully, since there are no right or wrong answers, students will feel less inhibited about expressing their opinions. The rating scale is intended as another tool for use by the teacher to measure the intensity of feelings about sexual values and attitudes. With this information the teacher could assess what areas would need greater attention and focus during class time. The case studies might be more useful after the first week of school. Here again, the teacher might want to use this tool as a measurement of how much the students can relate information taught in class with situations resembling those they might face in their lives.
(Recommended for 8th—12th grade Family Life Education.)
Key Words
Contraception General Sexuality
