Twenty-seven strategies for teaching contraception to adolescents.

This article summarizes research on the effects of education on adolescents' contraceptive behaviors and suggests strategies to enhance teaching for contraception. Learning about birth control methods in sex education classes does not necessarily enable teenagers to use them effectively. In addition to needing accurate, unbiased information about contraceptive technology, teenagers need help in clarifying their values so that their social behaviors are congruent with their moral codes. Adolescents also benefit from understanding how contraception relates to sexual behavior and how family planning may enable them to become parents at the time of their choice. Twenty-seven strategies for teachers are listed, each one related to a particular contraceptive problem adolescents encounter.