Family Life Education in the English-speaking Caribbean
Epps, R.P.; Corona, E.; Kodagoda, N.; Simonen, M.
Journal of Community Health 11(1): 70-74
1986
ISSN/ISBN: 0094-5145 PMID: 3745503 DOI: 10.1007/bf01341640Document Number: 346704
This article is based on evaluations made of programs in Antiqua, Barbados, Dominica, Jamaica, St. Christopher and Nevis, and St. Lucia. Although birth rates are relatively low in the English-speaking Caribbean (ranging between 16 and 30 per 1000 in 1984), the incidence of adolescent pregnancies and births is increasing. Mother-centered homes are frequent, and support from the father is often lacking. Adolescent births represent 25-35% of all births in the English-speaking Caribbean. This proportion has changed little over time. About 2-3% of all births to teenagers occur in the under-15 year old group. A significant proportion of teenage births occur to girls under age 18, before they finish school. The 1978 "Caribbean Workshop on Family Life Education and Health Education" defined family life education (FLE) as "the total physical, mental, social, and emotional well being of the individual so as to help him maximize his potential and to enable him to carry on the activities he needs to undertake for the good of himself and others." Out-of-school FLE includes community centers, factories, and youth centers. The youth center approach is most appropriate for this region because it provides a nucleus for skills training, recreation, and continuous education. Countries tend to focus almost exclusively on the youth center approach. Activities of these centers include 1) FLE; 2) contraceptive services, to some extent; 3) community involvement; and 4) programs with a male focus. Some places oppose family planning or contraceptive services to adolescents. Youth centers offer a broad range of activities. For these centers to be effective, their communities must elicit support from the business community, private social organizations, and volunteers. Each community must assess its own situation and consider the resources available. The projects have shown that it is possible to initiate and make considerable progress in the implementation of FLE programs for adolescents even when adolescent pregnancy and births are still highly sensitive and controversial issues, and when there are no official policies in favor of such programs.
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