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A recent article in The Nation told the story of Da, a lady who gave birth to a child when she was 16 years old. Da had a big fight with her parents over having become pregnant out of wedlock. She eventually had to quit school. Da's unplanned pregnancy occurred when she was a lower-secondary student. Now she is 22 and sells fried wontons to earn a living. She said if she could live the past over again, she would study hard and avoid upsetting her parents.

Teen pregnancy is not only an issue in Thailand, of course. Bristol Palin, a daughter of Sarah Palin, John McCain's running mate in last year's US presidential race, gave birth when she was barely 18 years old. And now Bristol says she would like to be an advocate against teen pregnancy. She was quoted as saying that, "Everyone should wait 10 years. I hope people learn from my story. It's so much easier if you're married, have a house and a career. It's not a situation you want to strive for."

However, many teens found themselves in an unwanted situation largely because of inadequate or insufficient sex education, even though they should learn these facts at an age when they become sexually mature. Sex education is absent or insufficient in schools partly because some conservatives treat the issue as taboo.

Some parents do not have sufficient communication with their children or ensure that they have accurate information about their bodies and the biological changes they are going through. Some even treat the issue as inappropriate. It is time that parents began to communicate with children on these issues more honestly.

Ironically, in the US, the number of teen pregnancies is found to be higher in conservative states than liberal ones. This despite the fact that conservative states tend to preach to teenagers that they should abstain from sexual relations until marriage. Even Bristol Palin admits that this perception is not realistic.

Da attributed her teenage pregnancy to a lack of knowledge, which proves that teenagers should be educated about safe sex, such as the use of condoms. If a girl becomes pregnant, parents and the community need to be more forgiving and helpful. The downside of teenage pregnancy is that most teenage mothers tend to quit studying and never go back to school again. This should not be the case. Young mothers should be given opportunities to continue their studies, not only in informal educational programmes but also in the formal system.

Social perceptions must change. These girls don't have to live in shame. Unfortunately, however, some cannot stand the social pressure, and many choose illegal abortions, which are dangerous to their health, or even commit suicide.

Teenagers are exposed to a variety of media that make them curious about their sexuality. Therefore, parents and schools must provide them with information to counter the many temptations and peer pressure. Teenagers need to be given sufficient knowledge about their bodies and sexual education.

Failure to educate our children properly will lead to more teenage pregnancies. Pregnancy is not a crime, but the challenge is for us to better equip our children for the temptations that will inevitably come their way. We must also start to be more open-minded with them.