Service Learning Programs Help Teens Avoid Pregnancy

WASHINGTON, May 30 -- Sex education and other programs that tell teenagers how to avoid pregnancy and AIDS do not encourage them to experiment and in some cases discourage it, a review of some 250 studies found.

The review, sponsored by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, identified a handful of programs that have succeeded in reducing teen pregnancy, including a handful that talk straight to teens about sex and a couple that focus on community service, giving teens constructive alternatives.

The review found that service learning programs, including voluntary service by teens in their communities and organized time for discussing and writing about volunteer experiences, can reduce teen pregnancy during program participation.

The review concluded that among the most effective programs for reducing teen pregnancy were the Teen Outreach Program, a nationwide youth development program, and Reach for Health, a health education and service learning program. The review suggested several possible reasons for service learning programs' success in reducing teen pregnancy rates, including participants' relationships with program leaders, their newfound independence, and their awareness of their ability to help others in their community.

The teen pregnancy review also noted that supervised after-school activities in general help teens avoid pregnancy by providing teens with less opportunity to engage in unprotected sex. Studies have shown that female teenagers involved in athletics are less likely than their non-athlete peers to be sexually active and to become pregnant.

As for sex-education programs, there remains no evidence about whether "abstinence-only" programs, a favorite of conservatives, are effective, the review said, even as the Bush administration proposes an increase in federal funding for them. A national evaluation of a $250 million abstinence program created by the 1996 welfare law is now under way, but results are not available.

Backers of these programs believe that talking about the benefits of birth control while encouraging abstinence sends a mixed message, but the report released Wednesday disagrees.

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