Colombia is attempting to prevent teen pregnancy by having students participate in an immersive school program that has youths spend time with very needy robots who are designed after one-month-old babies. The robots cry at programmed intervals day and night, and students have to feed and burp the baby and change its diaper. The students’ responses are tracked and recorded, and students are graded on how quickly they react. If a baby is left unattended for too long, it will shut down, and the student’s grade is affected. About 17 million teenage girls give birth each year. They face increased risk of health complications during pregnancy as well as lifelong economic challenges for themselves and their family. Many times, any hope of an education or dreams of a career are derailed for the young mothers. Latin America has the third highest teenage pregnancy rate in the world, and though the global rate has declined over the past decade, the rate of decline in Latin America still lags behind other countries. In Colombia, one in five mothers is between 15 and 19 years old. That’s why 100 of the ninth-graders in Tame, Colombia, are enrolled in the class that aims to prevent early pregnancies. The students undergo 30 hours of instruction on top of the two-day simulated baby exercise.
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