EFFECTS OF EARLY PREGNANCY ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF TEENAGERS IN SELECTED

AREAS OF STO. TOMAS BATANGAS DURING FIRST SEMESTER S.Y 2017-2018

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of Senior

High School Department of Almond

Academy Foundation Incorporated

General Academic Strand

In Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirement for Practical

Research 2
 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION AND IT’S BACKGROUND

Introduction

Nowadays, more and more students are getting pregnant between the ages of 17 and 19. In this case,

early/teenage pregnancy can be defined as the situation where a woman conceives a baby at an age much younger

than expected. There are several things that have brought about the rising number of teenage moms in the country,

the first of which is the convenience of sexual intercourse. Premarital sex has become a “trend” among young

people wherein it is believed to deepen the relationship between lovers. Another reason is that some women

coming from broken families tend to try and fill the emotional gap in their hearts by seeking comfort from

relationships. But the saddest cause of premature pregnancy is rape, which is also one of the biggest challenges

faced by our country’s women. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 16 million

women aged 15-19 and almost one million women under 15 years of age give birth each year.

For this reason, questions are asked: Is it possible to properly handle one’s studies and pregnancy at the

same time? Does early pregnancy mean your education is a lost cause? Is early pregnancy a hindrance in terms of

studies? As for the first question, it is possible in my experience, but there are a lot of risks and restrictions that

come with it. For example, a pregnant woman shouldn’t get stressed out or worried because it could affect the

baby. Small things like posture is a big deal, and you have to be fully aware of your health and safety at all times.

Furthermore, young parents get embarrassed when they think of how others could be gossiping or looking down

on them, making it too difficult to simultaneously study and get through the pregnancy. I personally don’t think

it’s right to let the opinion of other people sway you, because it was your actions and decisions that got you in

that situation in the first place, so I say it is just fair to face it instead of hiding.

As for the second question, it depends on the current situation. If your parents and partner have accepted

your pregnancy and are willing to give you their full support, it is likely for you to continue with your studies and

succeed. It isn’t particularly important at what age you graduate as long as you get there. However, there’s always

the possibility that money is tight for your family at the moment and having no one to care for the baby would
force you to stay at home with it, along with the probability that your partner may be too young or inexperienced

to have a stable job that can support you and your child. In this case, it would be very difficult to try and continue

with your studies.

In response to the last question, I have my personal experience to relate. Though it was very hard dealing

with early pregnancy as it interfered with my education, I persevered and got through it. Now, I focus on making

my child an inspiration for myself along with my parents and husband that gave me the courage to get on with

my life. Despite the fortunate turn of events on my part, I know that many people in the same situation that I was

in would choose to give up on their studies altogether because the pressure of other people’s judgment becomes

too much for them to bear.

Early pregnancy is a complicated situation, but your future and your baby’s future depends on the decisions

you make through all the struggles. Many young people tend to be drawn by the excitement of unfamiliar things

such as relationships and seem to forget that they are responsible for the consequences caused by their actions.

Because of this, it is very important to think twice before doing something you aren’t sure of. Regret never comes

first, choose wisely before it’s too late.

Background of the Study

The early pregnancy it is said to be caused by sending people around and not using contraceptives. It cause

to the relationship with parents and other family members. It is not good for young people to get pregnant because

they are not yet ready safe and healthy delivery, because the body of most women they can convict young mothers

because their body may be small enough to get the child or the baby out, mothers are more likely to experience

younger than 17 long and hard below and barren birth without medical help is may be die woman, because of

early childhood problems. The vagina may also damaged of that woman due to child birth, so the urine or stool

can be thwarted the baby is more likely to be too small or premature than a child younger than 17, if you are

pregnant you should try to look at a trained midwife or even a health worker at the car best early time to know

what or is the safest childbirth, take a look at the specialist right away. Another reason or case of getting pregnant

is the disruption of the future and the l9ss of the family. Example a child is pregnant, if she is 17 years old can
stop her. Young females have not yet reached childhood and the causes of teenage pregnancy maybe liked to

things such as lack of education and information about reproduction, peer pressure and early engagement of

sexual. Teenage mothers generally do not have the resources to care for a child and after they are not able to

sustain healthy habits throughout pregnancy to ensure they produce a healthy baby. Young females often do not

complete their education and they begin a perpetual cycle in which their child may futher go on to become a

teenage parent as well.

Conceptual Framework

The concept of this study focused on the “Effects of Early Pregnancy on Academic Performance in

teenagers of Selected Areas of Sto. Tomas Batangas during First Semester S.Y 2017-2018”

Figure 1. It shows the relationship both dependent variable which is the academic performance and then

independent variable consists of 3parts, part 1 which are profile of the respondents which include age, and gender,

part 2 which consists of attitude, priorities and time management and part 3 consists of family factor and peer

factor.

IV DV

I. Profile of the
Respondents
a. Age; and
b. Gender;
II. Internal Factors
Academic Performance
a. Attitude;
(85-90)
b. Priorities; and
c. Time management;
III. External factors
a. Family factor; and
b. Peer factor;

Figure 1
Theoretical Framework

Erikson’s Psychosocial Child Development Theory

Erik Erikson was influenced by Freud’s work, but his own child development theories focused on the

importance of social experiences in shaping a child’s psychological growth.

Like Freud’s theory, Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development lays out a series of stages the people

go through. Unlike Freud’s theory, Erickson’s theory covers development for the entire lifespan from birth until

death. Freud believed that development was largely complete by age 5, while Erikson believed that people

continue to develop and grow well into old age. At each stage of development, people face a crisis that they must

master. Mastering the crisis leads to the development of a psychological virtue.

For example, the primary conflict during the adolescent period involves establishing a sense of personal

identity. Success or failure in dealing with the conflicts at each stage can impact overall functioning. During the

adolescent stage, for example, failure to develop an identity results in role confusion.Erikson’s theory begins at

birth, as children start out in the trust versus mistrust stage. During this early stage of life, it is important for

children to receive consistent care so that they can learn to trust the people in the world around them. Development

continues as children grow, and at each stage the face new conflicts and learn new skills that serve them well

throughout life.

Parental Role-Modeling

During the process of separating and developing increasing autonomy from parents, teenagers occa

sionally revert to earlier coping patterns and require increased nurturance and support. Even though they may

appear aloof or unaffected by parental values, they are actually strongly influenced by the attitudes, values, and

behaviors modeled by their adult caregivers. Hence, “it is extremely important for adults to open lines of

communication and be mindful of the values and behaviors they are demonstrating to youth” (Hazen et al.,

2008,). Sometimes after long periods of rebellion and rejection, and after having romanticized relationships with
surrogate parental figures (i.e., developing a “crush” on other adults), they become amenable to accepting the

parental values and standards of conduct that they formerly rejected. Healthy parenting accepts individuated

teen- age identity formation and incrementally safer degrees of physical and psychosocial separation from

parents.

Parents and other prestige or authority figures in a teenager’s life can influence the development of a

healthy self-concept by positive role-modeling (i.e., setting a good example through having responsible and

gratifying experiences in their own lives) and by nonjudgmental acceptance of their children. Parents should

affirm the positive qualities that they identify in their teenager’s personality and overtly demonstrate admiration

and praise for these qualities. In most cases, the higher rates of conflict with parents during adolescence are not

indicative of a serious rift in parent-teenager relationships. Even when emotions run very high, both parents and

adolescents report that the overall quality of their relationships remains strong, with a foundation of shared

values and a considerable amount of mutual affection, respect, and family commitment. The conflicts are

usually seen by both parties as relatively insignificant arguments about issues like dating curfews and personal

appearance, while there is overall agreement about principal values such as honesty and the importance of a

good education (Arnett,1999).

Social norms theory (SNT; A. D. Berkowitz, 2003, 2005; Perkins, 2003) had its start with research in the

1980s by Perkins and Berkowitz, who found that college students typically had exaggerated beliefs around the

drinking habits and consumption of other students and that these misperceptions were at significant variance

with actual drinking patterns and consumption norms. The social norms approach to prevention of excessive

AOD consumption is to correct these mis- perceptions in order to reduce extreme drinking. SNT is generally

based on social learning theory and, more specifically, theory of planned behavior and reasoned action theory

(Myers, 2006).

SNT holds that subjective norms, or the perceived expectations of others or of peer groups who approve

or disapprove of a particular behavior, along with attitudes toward the behavior are determinants of that

behavior. SNT posits that people are highly influenced by what they think their peers are doing or thinking and
then conform to what they believe is the norm, or social expectation. Thus, people may overestimate the value

of problem behaviors and underestimate healthy behaviors, tending to increase problem behaviors (NSNI,

2008). SNT also posits that subjective norms that come from incorrect assessment of what others do will

influence social behavior (A. D. Berkowitz, 2005; DeJong, 2003; DeJong et al., 2006).

For example, even though 25% of Americans do not drink, many believe that “everyone drinks” or

“everyone parties.” One study showed that college students perceived that 60% of their peers drink three or

more times a week; the survey showed that 33% actually drink that often (NSNI, 2008). An even more

problematic aspect of adherence to perceived social norms is the widespread belief among some youth that it is

the norm to claim allegiance to gang membership.

The first objective of intervention is to get individuals to understand their subjective perception of the

behaviors of their peers and what they think the normative behaviors of their peers are (subjective norms) and

then to get them to compare these with the actual normative behavior. A further step is to relate their subjective

norms to healthy norms. If individuals can understand the perceptions of their peers in the society at large, they

will be more apt to identify unhealthy and harmful behaviors and, in response, begin to identify and even

normalize healthy behaviors (UCASA, 2008).

Social norms include a broad array of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors, including cultural traditions,

community standards and mores, customs, shared beliefs, and common behavioral patterns (Ferris State

University, 2008). The power of social norms is that they influence people in either unhealthy or healthy ways.

For example, if we perceive that most people care about others, we are more likely to care about others and treat

others in a positive way. If we perceive that most people drink heavily, use drugs, and pick fights at parties, we

are likely to do the same.

Statement of the Problem

This study aims to know “Effects of Early Pregnancy on Academic Performance in teenagers of Selected

Areas of Sto Tomas Batangas during First Semester S.Y 2017-2018”

Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions:

1. What is the profile of the respondents in terms of ;

a. Age; and

b. Gender?

2. What is the mean average of teenagers?

3. What is the extent of the internal factors in terms of ;

a. Attitude;

b. Priorities; and

c. Time management?

4. How do the respondents perceived on the early pregnancy affected by external factors as to ;

a. Family factor; and

b. Peer factor?

5. Is there a significant relationship between teenager academic performance and profile of the respondents?

6. Is there a significant relationship between teenager academic performance and internal factors?

7. Is there a significant relationship between teenager academic performance and external factors?

Hypotheses

There is no significant relationship between profile of the respondents and academic performance

There is no significant relationship between internal factors and academic performance

There is no significant relationship between external factors and academic performance

Scope and Limitation

The researcher conducted this study to know the Effects of Early Pregnancy on Academic Performance of

teenager in Selected Areas of Sto Tomas Batangas during First Semester S.Y 2017-2018 and also wants to conduct

what would be the result if they’ll become pregnant while they are still studying.

The study is limited for Selected Areas of Sto Tomas Batangas only. Hence, the researcher chose the

teenager of Sto Tomas Batangas because nowadays there are so many victims of this case.

Significance of the Study

The researcher conducted this study to find out what causes of teenage pregnancy in the lives of students

and out-of-school youth in Sto. Tomas, Batangas. This study will have benefits to the following:

For Students, who are still at school because it will give them information about the cause of teenage

pregnancy to their studies. In one way or in another this study will guide them to focus first their attention to their

studies rather than giving priority to their romantic affairs with boyfriends.

For Parents, to enable them to realize the great role in educating their teenagers, protecting and diverting

them from indulging early sex especially if without marriage. They must be aware of what kind of peers their

teenagers must have.

For Teachers, to be informed on how important is education to the development of children to adulthood.

This enables them to guide and identify the major causes of teenage pregnancy especially in Sto Tomas, Batangas.

For them to intensify their functions to counter the causes other problem.

For Community, to be informed what would be the possible causes of teenage pregnancy in their lives.
 For Future Researcher, this study will help them in their research. They can guide this study to their

research.

Definition of Terms

Attitude- it refers to the behavior of a child.

Early- sooner than usual or than expected

Family factor- it is a factor in which family action is affecting the child

Peer factor – it is a factor in which a group of people affect a certain person because of their influence

Pregnancy- a state of being pregnant

Teenagers- are the one who experience pregnancy while they are still studying

Priorities- is their most priotise between child and studies

Time Management- is it how they balance their time in life