|
|
Good News Network
Teens Today Are
Actually Good – 7 Positive Trends Prove It
Have teens gotten a bad rap in recent years? They are typically
characterized as self-involved, reckless, and only interested in
“sharing” on their phones, but the youth of today, in reality, are
actually behaving more virtuously than they have in a long time.
Statistics tell an optimistic story. From smoking and drug use to
unwanted pregnancies and abortions, the trends today show most
teenagers making good choices. They are even volunteering in their
communities more than ever before.
Smoking has become uncool. According to national CDC statistics,
cigarette smoking among high school students is at the lowest level in
22 years. The rate was cut almost in half, leaving just 15.7 percent of
teens smoking in 2013.
Drunk driving is far less common. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey has
revealed that at half as many high school students say they got behind
the wheel drunk in 2011 compared to 1991.
Drug abuse is down. Recreational use of prescription pain relievers
continue a three year decline, part of an overall two-decade trend. The
number of high school kids using was 33% lower than a decade ago,
according to a recently released national survey, Monitoring the
Future. The survey noted that marijuana use remained stable, even with
the increase of states allowing recreational use.
Unwanted Pregnancy and Abortion has plummeted. Teen pregnancy has
declined almost continuously for more than two decades, plummeting from
61 to 26 births per thousand girls, according to federal health
statistics. Also, the rate of abortions among women under 20 has fallen
since it peaked in the early 1990s, according to 2014 research by the
nonprofit Guttmacher Institute.
Kids are hanging in there until graduation. Efforts to keep teens in
school are paying off. The National Center for Educational Statistics
reported the high school dropout rate has decreased from 12 percent in
1990 to 7 percent in 2012.
Today’s teens regularly volunteer more. A higher number of teens in
twelfth-grade are volunteering at least once per month. The proportion
rose from 24 percent in 1991 to 37 percent in 2012, according to Child
Trends. The nonprofit research center that tracks youth trends says it
is an encouraging trend, “Teens who volunteer are more likely to have
positive academic, psychological, and occupational well-being.”
Armed with these positive trends, the next time you hear complaints
about “today’s youth” you can inject the conversation with a few rays
of hope.
Want to see an honorable teen in action? WATCH the video about a girl
who saved a baby in a Wal-mart store at the Good News Network
|
|
|
|
