ABSTRACT
Teenage pregnancy remains a significant social and health concern among adolescents, particularly due to limited access to reliable reproductive health information, inadequate guidance, social media influence, and insufficient school-based interventions. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of school-based campaign materials in enhancing students’ understanding of teenage pregnancy prevention. A descriptive quantitative research design was employed to determine the respondents’ level of knowledge, perceptions, and challenges related to teenage pregnancy prevention. A researcher-developed Likert-scale questionnaire was administered to junior high school students from Grade 7-10. The study sought to provide relevant information that may support the development of appropriate school-based educational strategies for promoting informed decision-making and responsible reproductive health practices among adolescents.
The findings revealed that most respondents were 13-15 years old, with female respondents slightly outnumbering male respondents, and that the participants were relatively distributed across Grade 7-10. The respondents demonstrated a high level of knowledge regarding teenage pregnancy prevention, with a grand mean of 3.49. They strongly agreed that they understood the biological process of conception, had knowledge about contraception, and could distinguish factual reproductive health information from myths and unreliable sources. However, their knowledge regarding where to access reliable reproductive health services and counselling was comparatively lower. The respondents generally did not perceive peer pressure and social norms as major influences on behaviors associated with teenage pregnancy, as indicated by a grand mean of 1.60. Likewise, they generally did not perceive school-based campaign materials as exposing them to risky behaviors, with a grand mean of 1.95, and did not consider the identified factors as major challenges to teenage pregnancy prevention, with a grand mean of 1.71.
The study concluded that school-based campaign materials may serve as an effective supplementary educational strategy for improving students’ understanding of teenage pregnancy prevention. Significant differences were observed in selected dimensions based on age and grade level, while sex did not show significant differences across the assessed dimensions. The findings suggest that school-based campaign materials should further emphasize reproductive health knowledge, contraception, and responsible decision-making, peer pressure, social media influences, consent, personal boundaries, and access to reliable reproductive health services and counselling. These materials may contribute to creating a more informed and responsible adolescent population; however, the should complement rather than replace appropriate guidance and counselling from qualified teachers, school counsellors, and healthcare professionals.