Teenagers make poor parents (argue yes or no).

NO TEENAGE PARENTS SHOULD BE LEFT BEHIND

INTRODUCTION

Statistics can be so alarming . Every year , more than a million teenagers in the US become pregnant (Scholl , 2007 ,

. 28 . Out of these figures , 95 are unintended and 40 - 50 of these result in live birth (Scholl , 2007 ,

. 28 Sieger Renk , 2007 ,

. 567 . However , what 's more alarming than statistics is stereotyping , which is a big contributing factor to the way society views teenage parents . Through this narrow prism , they are relegated into a box with a label that says `poor

parents ' But this well-entrenched stereotype - teenagers are poor parents - needs to be exposed for what it is : a skewed image that does not reflect current realities . Teenagers , in contrary to old popular belief , can be good parents

DISCUSSION

First of all , age is not an indicator of being a good or poor parent It is not true that school-aged parents are ruining their own and their children 's future prospects (Mollborn , 2007 ,

.92 ) because of their inability to pursue their education in to get a better-paying job and thus , be able to provide well for their child While it may be easy to look upon teenage parenthood as a reason for dropping out of school , Mollborn (2007 ) says that becoming a (teenage parent does not cause school dropout , but rather , preexisting socio-economic and other factors cause both parenthood and dropout (p 93

Teenage parents these days do not remain unschooled , unmoved , or uninspired by the situation (Life in the Fast Lane , 2008 . In fact , a high school student from Los Angeles , California who got pregnant while still enrolled continued to pursue her dream of taking a college course claiming that "because I have a daughter , I need those opportunities even more (The Rights of Teen Parents , 2006

Secondly , opportunities and challenges can transform teenage parents into good parents who consider the child while making good choices in life . They may choose to continue with their studies , or get a job , or do both at the same time . They may also choose to focus raising their child first and continue their studies later . Or they may explore other options with the well-being of their child foremost in their mind Because of these challenges , teenagers grow up ' and take on their responsibilities while accepting their limitations (Leadbeater Way 2001 Stevens , 1995-1996 cited in Larson , 2004 , 473

Most interestingly , teenage parents can be good parents with the help of various public and private entities . Gone are the days when a pregnant teenager is stigmatized (Renk and Sieger , 2007 ,

578 . While the situation is far from ideal and will not be trumpeted as a role model to school-age individuals , the Americans have been accepting , if not understanding . Pregnant and parenting adolescents can seek help from available support in the community , be it their local school , health center , church , and other public and private organizations . Both family- and community-based support groups help teenage parents achieve positive results in meeting the...