This article examines the literature on schooling for teenage mothers in order to expose the normalizing discourses that position young mothers as at risk for failure. Through an exploration of the historical and socio-cultural positioning of teenage mothers over the past few decades, the author illustrates the schooled responses to adolescent…

This paper examines two aspects of teen childbearing in the United States. First, it reviews and synthesizes the evidence on the reasons why teen birth rates are so uniquely high in the United States and especially in some states. Second, it considers why and how it matters. We argue that economists' typical explanations are unable to account for…

This document reports on the feasibility of requiring private insurance carriers to provide coverage of the pregnancy-related expenses of dependent minors and newborn care expenses of their offspring in Texas. The document relates the history of legislative interest in the topic of teenage pregnancy. The report states that although private medical…

Examines narratives and novels written for young adults that deal with teenage pregnancy and parenting. Discusses eight common messages found in 17 such short stories and books, and notes three areas of significant silence. (SR)

There is a high correlation between adolescent women's educational skills, goals, and family income and the likelihood of pregnancy. Schools have a statutory duty to provide health instruction; this may include pregnancy-prevention programs. Includes discussion of Acquired Immune Defficiency Syndrom (AIDS) and school responsibility for educational…

Stricter child support enforcement may reduce unwed childbearing by raising the costs of fatherhood. The authors investigate this hypothesis using a sample of young women from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, to which they add information on state child support enforcement. Models of the probability of a teenage premarital birth and of…

This article explores the politics surrounding the education of pregnant/mothering students. Utilizing Title IX, which guarantees the rights of pregnant/mothering students to an education equal to her peers, as an analytical lens, the author specifically identifies how absences in knowledge, research, and practice about the education of…

For the past several decades, the teenage birth rate in the United States has exceeded that of other industrialized nations. To explore the factors behind this high birth rate, this volume summarizes recent research conducted in the United States on the perceived causes of teenage childbearing. This review is organized around the events leading to…

Argues that unwed mothers should receive their primary assistance from their own families when possible and from private group homes subsidized with public funds when family assistance is unavailable. The current system of cash entitlements for unwed mothers has been a colossal failure. (SLD)

The Teenage Pregnancy and Parenting Project (TAPP) of San Francisco is a city-wide interagency service system coordinated by the city's Family Service Agency and Unified School District. Clients participate in pre- or post-natal service systems that provide free, personal, and continuous counseling for up to three years. Case managers identify and…

In the United States about one million teenagers become pregnant each year and, of these, almost one-half will give birth and become mothers. Maternal factors that have been linked with better overall outcomes for adolescent mothers include social and family support, completion of high school, and limiting subsequent childbearing during…

The work of Joseph Gusfield provides the framework for analyzing the two different perspectives taken by the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) and Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) to combat teen pregnancy. Gusfield first analyzed how the problem emerged and then identified "ownership" of the problem. According to Gusfield, the…

Adolescent pregnancy (AP) is explored from historical and policy perspectives. The "epidemic" of AP, with 4 out of every 10 teenage girls becoming pregnant, is typically portrayed as a recent and unprecedented problem that requires massive federal intervention, but the problem is not new. Chapter 1 analyzes adolescent sexuality, AP, and…

Adolescent sexual activity and the resulting pregnancy and transmission of sexually transmitted diseases have been on the rise during the past several decades. This chapter addresses each of the three objectives regarding sexual behavior outlined in the Healthy People 2000 initiative. Background data and trends in adolescent sexual behavior are…

Analyzes implications of the birthrate for teenage mothers, and examines the limitations of key statistical indicators. Evidence suggests that the rate of childbearing among U.S. teens may be increasing after a decade of stability. To deal with this effectively, it may be necessary to enhance life options of teenagers. (SLD)