SCHOOL BASED ASSESSMENT 2023

CANDIDATES’ NAMES: JAMEEL ALFONSO (1600390053)

& NUMBERS MAYA MARTIN (1600390614)
KENISHA PETERS (1600390754)
KIERAAH THOMPSON (1600390983)

NAME OF SCHOOL: PALO SECO SECONDARY

CENTRE NUMBER: 160039

SUBJECT: SOCIAL STUDIES

GROUP NUMBER: 1

NAME OF TEACHER: MS. S. SINGH

TITLE OF STUDY: ABORTION

 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are most thankful to God because without Him none of this would have been possible.
Thank you to our parents and Ms. Singh for their guidance in making this project a success.
Lastly, but not least thank you to the respondents of Quarry Village, Siparia who participated
in answering our questionnaires for this investigation.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

TASK DESCRIPTION PAGE

1 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 1

2 REASON FOR SELECTING THE AREA OF RESEARCH 2

3 METHOD OF INVESTIGATION 3

4 DATA COLLECTION INSTUMENT 4

5 PROCEDURE FOR DATA COLLECTION 8

6 PRESENTATION OF DATA 9

7 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA 11

8 STATEMENT OF FINDINGS 13

9 RECOMMENDATIONS AND IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY 14

BIBLIOGRAPHY 15
 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

What are the reasons for young adolescent females having an abortion in the community of
Quarry Village, Siparia?

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 REASON FOR SELECTING THE AREA OF RESEARCH

We felt that there was the need to investigate the social issue surrounding abortion. Abortion
is one of the societal problems that brings a lot of controversy. Young females are oftentimes
treated harshly in the event they become pregnant. They are the ones who society shuns and
are blamed for the pregnancy. Therefore, we would like to investigate the reasons why young
adolescent females in Quarry Village, Siparia would have an abortion. It is our hope that the
information discovered can be used to assist young females who are in this situation.

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 METHOD OF INVESTIGATION

In order to investigate this issue, we decided to use a questionnaire as our method of

investigation to collect the relevant data.

Some advantages of a questionnaire include:

• Gets the respondents’ point of view of a situation

• Helps bring greater structure to the research as data can be collated easily

• Respondents can be given a reasonable amount of time to complete the questionnaire

therefore it is convenient

• Many persons can be reached in a reasonable period of time for the study

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 DATA COLLECTION INSTRUMENT

Dear Respondent,
We are in the process of conducting research on the topic “ABORTION” for our CSEC
School Based Assessment. Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability.
There are no wrong answers and your name is not required. You can write on the lines
provided or place a tick where necessary. Thank you for your time and assistance.

Respectfully,
Jameel Alfonso
Maya Martin
Kenisha Peters
Kieraah Thompson

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QUESTIONS:

1) What is your gender?

o Male
o Female

2) What is your age?

__________ years

3) What is your ethnicity?

o African
o East Indian
o Chinese
o Mixed
o Other: ______________________________

4) Do you support abortion?

o Yes
o No

5) a. Do you think abortions are safe?

o Yes
o No

b. Give a reason for your answer.

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

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6) Do you know of any young female adolescent who had an abortion before?
o Yes
o No

7) a. Which adolescent age group do you think are most likely to have abortions?
o 13-14
o 15-16
o 17-18

b. Give a reason for your answer.

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

8) What do you think are the reasons of a young adolescent female having an abortion and
why?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

9) What do you think are the consequences a young adolescent female having an abortion,
and why?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

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10) What advice would you give to a young adolescent who is close to you if they are
considering having an abortion?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

11) a. Should we encourage young adolescent teenagers to view pictures of abortion before
they have one?
o Yes
o No

b. Give a reason for your answer.

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

12) a. Is it right for boyfriends and parents to pressure women to have an abortion?
o Yes
o No

b. Give a reason for your answer.

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

13)What are the recommendations can you give to curb the incidence of “Abortion’?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
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 PROCEDURE FOR DATA COLLECTION

There are approximately 160 households in the community of Quarry Village, Siparia. A
sample of 20% was needed to achieve an accurate sample of the population. Therefore, 35
questionnaires were distributed to get a representative sample.

A method of random selection was used to determine the sample population. We took post
box numbers of various homes in Quarry Village, Siparia. The post box numbers of 160
homes were written on slips of paper and placed in a box. The box was shaken repeatedly and
35 slips of paper were chosen with the selected house numbers.

The questionnaires were distributed on Tuesday 6th September, 2022 collected on Tuesday
13th September, 2022. A total of 34 questionnaires were fully completed. There were 22
females and 12 males in the study. The ages ranged from 19 to 30 years old.

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 PRESENTATION OF DATA

A Column Graph Showing the Adolescent Age Group Respondents Believe are Most Likely
to Have Abortions

70
60%
60
50
Percentage

40
30%
30
20
10%
10
0
13 - 14 15 - 16 17 - 18
Adolescent Age Groups
13 - 14 15 - 16 17 - 18

Figure 1

A Pie Chart Showing the Reasons Respondents Gave for Young Adolescent Females
Having an Abortion

Relationship Issues
30% 20%

Avoiding Single Motherhood

Health Issues
10%

40% Education

Figure 2

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 A Table Showing the Consequences Respondents Believe Would Result from Abortion

NO. CONSEQUENCES GIVEN PERCENTAGE

1 Guilt and Regret 60%

2 Future Infertility 20%

3 Death 15%

4 Shun by the Community 5%

Figure 3

A Doughnut Showing Whether or Not Young Adolescent Teenagers Should View Abortion
Pictures Before Having an Abortion

YES

50% 50%
NO

Figure 4

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 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

Figure 1:
A column graph showing the adolescent age group respondents believe are most likely to
have abortions. 10% said that the 13 – 14 age group would be the most likely to have
abortions. They said that the teenagers would be advised by their parents that they are unable
to raise a baby and would give them little choice in keeping the baby. 60% of the respondents
said that the 15 – 16 age group would most likely have an abortion. They said that at this
point in their lives they would be studying towards their career. Therefore, an abortion would
be most suitable since their education was more important. 30% of the respondents believe
that the 17 – 18 age group of adolescents would most likely have an abortion. They said that
the teenagers may make their own decision, and at this age would want to live their lives
without the attachment of a baby.

Figure 2:
A pie chart showing the reasons respondents gave for young adolescent females having an
abortion. 10% of the respondents said that the reason for the abortion may be relationship
issues. The young adolescent female may be having issues with the father of the baby and
may refuse to bring the baby into that type of situation. The fear and uncertainty of the
relationship lasting may cause the teenager to opt for an abortion. 30% believe that the reason
for abortion is the adolescent avoiding single motherhood. They said that the adolescent may
in some cases not be sure of who the father is or they may have been turned away by the
potential father. The male may not have accepted responsibility for the unborn baby and this
would cause the teenager to abort the baby. 20% of the respondents think that unforeseen
health issues in the adolescent can lead to an abortion. They felt that if the baby threatened
the life of the teenager, then the only option was to abort the fetus. 40% expressed that the
education of the adolescent was critical and therefore, this is a reason for the abortion of the
baby. They said that the baby would limit the success of the teenager in school and make it
harder to start a career.

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Figure 3:
A table showing the consequences respondents believe would result from abortion. 60% felt
that the adolescent would have extreme guilt and regret for the rest of their lives. They think
that when the adolescent has the abortion, they will develop guilt for taking a life. They may
then feel regret as they understand later on that the baby was their own flesh and blood. This
may be more present in young females who were not given a choice but rather forced to have
the abortion. These feelings of guilt and regret can develop into depression and if left
untreated may result in suicide. 20% of the respondents think that the females may face future
infertility. This means that during the procedure to remove the fetus, the reproductive organs
may become damaged, thereby preventing the teenager from becoming pregnant later on in
life. 15% said that death can be a consequence of abortion for the young adolescent. They felt
that if the abortion is done by an inexperienced medical doctor or unlicensed medical
practitioner the risk of death is high. They believe that the adolescent can bleed out or even
face an allergic reaction to any medication given. 5% of the respondents think that being shun
by the community is a consequence. They said that people talk with each other often about
other persons’ lives, and the abortion would eventually come out in public. The adolescent
would then be victimized by others, community members, neighbours, other young females,
religious groups etc.

Figure 4:
A doughnut showing whether or not young adolescent teenagers should view abortion
pictures before having an abortion. 50% of the respondents felt that the adolescent should be
shown pictures of what the abortion involves before proceeding. They said that the teenager
would understand what would happen to the fetus if that was the choice. Others said that by
showing the adolescent they may change their mind from having the abortion at all. 50% felt
that it was not okay to show the adolescent any images of abortion. They said it would affect
the final decision to have an abortion even if it was the right thing to do. Some said that those
images would leave the teenagers scarred for life if they did still choose to have the abortion.

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 STATEMENT OF FINDINGS

The following are THREE statements based on the data presented from the questionnaires:

• The respondents felt that the 15 – 16 age group of adolescents where MOST likely to
have an abortion if they got pregnant; 10% said it was the 13 – 14 age group and 30%
felt it was the 17 – 18 age group.

• The reasons that were given by the respondents for young adolescent females having
an abortion include Relationship issues (10%), Avoiding single motherhood (30%),
Health issues (20%), and Education (40%).

• The consequences faced by the adolescents from having an abortion are Guilt and
regret (60%), Future infertility (20%), Death (15%), and Shun by the community
(5%).

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 RECOMMENDATIONS AND IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY

The issue of abortion can be curbed in a number of ways. The following are two possible
ways:

• One, the Member of Parliament of the various constituencies across Trinidad and
Tobago can collaborate with the nurses and/or doctors in the clinics. They can arrange
to do presentations at the community centres surrounding the topics of teenage
pregnancy and abortion.

• Two, the hospitals and clinics can all have a specialized doctor who attends to persons
who wish to have an abortion. The specialist can be trained to deal with young
adolescent females and their parents or guardians.

The second recommendation can be implemented through hospitals and clinics. Teenage
pregnancy is a norm in society now and it is not unusual to see young pregnant females. The
doctors can be trained to assist in dealing with these cases. They can offer services which do
not involve abortion. For example, the doctor can suggest carrying the baby to full term and
then giving the baby to a foster home or adoption. The doctors can start providing contact
information via social media and other mass media to make adolescents aware of their
options other than abortions.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ramsawak, A. and Umraw, R. R. (2005). Modules in Social Studies with SBA Guide and
CXC Questions. 4th ed. Trinidad: Caribbean Educational Publishers Ltd. 141 – 160.

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