ASSESSING CONTRACEPTIVES KNOWLEDGE AND UTILIZATION AMONG ADOLESCENTS IN EDO CENTRAL SENATORIAL DISTRICT: IMPLICATION FOR SCHOOL BASED SEX EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Abstract

The study was titled assessing contraceptives knowledge and utilization among adolescents in senior secondary schools in Edo Central Senatorial District: implication for school based sex education programs. Two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted a cross sectional survey design. A well-structured questionnaire was used for the study. The reliability of 
the instrument was 0.82 using test-retest method. The population of the study composed six thousand and twenty-two (6022) adolescents in senior secondary schools in Edo central senatorial district. The sample size of the study was 300 
using random sampling technique. Using descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation the research questions were answered and the hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMCC). The study revealed that pills, condoms and emergency contraceptives (postinor) were the most common contraceptive options accessible 
to adolescents in senior secondary schools in Edo central senatorial district. The level of contraceptive was low. The study showed a significant relationship between school-based sex education and adolescent’s awareness and utilization of contraceptives in Edo central senatorial district. It was however recommended that the government should establish school-based sex education programs to address the gaps in sex education and schools should walk closely with health care providers to facilitate workshops and health fairs that provides students with accurate information about sex education.