When I was a kid, it seemed that all of my older aunts and female cousins got knocked up at an awfully young age. I assumed that was because they were idiots. I was, of course, an arrogant and self-righteous little snot. (Little has changed in that regard, but that's beside the point.) As I grew older, the joke continued that members of our family bred well in captivity - but being a generally inquisitive little shit I started to notice some trends that have held true for my friends, family, and general acquaintance.
1. Kids/teenagers know a LOT more about sex than adults give them credit for, but they don't know a damn thing about contraception. This is true regardless of whether your friendly neighborhood schools go the "Abstinence Only" route or try for a more comprehensive sex-ed program. Unless you have a teacher that actually knows how to engage the students in a real way, school is school and the kids are not listening. And trying to pretend that your precious snowflake would never engage in that kind of behavior isn't going to make that baby bump go away any faster. There are still a lot of ridiculous myths floating around out there (my favorite is the "you can't get pregnant the first time you have sex" gem), and the kids of this country need some real adults, older siblings, parents, SOMEBODY speaking reality out there.
2. The birth-control pill is not nearly as effective as people think it is. In order to get those magical 90-whatever percent effective rates that they publish, you have to remember to take it every day at the same time without fail for more than a month and then you cannot miss a single day. I have yet to meet a teenager that does not already have a chronic medical condition that can handle that. There are also many other medications (especially antibiotics) than can greatly reduce the efficacy of the pill. Your weight can have a huge impact on efficacy. If you don't believe me, I can name at least ten kids that were conceived on the pill without even thinking hard, although to be fair, one of those is still cooking. The pill is a good start, but you had better have a back-up plan....
3. Condoms... they break. Especially if you're planning on using over twenty of them in one weekend. Much like the pill, have a back-up plan.
The key is, educate yourself. Don't do ANYTHING (sex or otherwise) without knowing what you're getting into - know the risks, take precautions, then you can enjoy the rewards. For all medications, know what the drawbacks are, and know what is best for you. And don't do ANYTHING without being ready and willing to accept the consequences.
For more on this topic, I highly recommend Dan Savage, a hilarious and highly informative advice columnist.
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