Parental Heteroregulation and Mathematical Efficiency among Secondary School Learners: Support, Control and Scaffolding Withdrawal in Cognitive Self-Regulation

Mathematics learning requires not only content knowledge but also the capacity to understand tasks, plan procedures, sustain attention, monitor errors and adjust strategies. This systematic review with narrative synthesis examined how parental heteroregulation may support or constrain these regulatory processes and, consequently, mathematical efficiency among secondary school learners. The preserved review records documented searches of ERIC, ScienceDirect, SpringerLink, Cairn.info, HAL and Google Scholar, supplemented by reference-list searching and full-text retrieval through academic networks. English- and French-language publications available up to 31 December 2024 were considered. Aggregate screening records indicated 54 documents identified, 38 titles and abstracts screened, 16 full texts assessed and eight studies included. Four studies provided mathematics-specific evidence, whereas four complementary studies informed the mechanisms linking parental involvement, self-regulated learning and achievement. During revision, methodological quality and evidential directness were appraised retrospectively using five design-sensitive domains adapted from JBI guidance. Findings consistently distinguished autonomy-supportive assistance from intrusive or substitutive involvement. Supportive practices clarify goals, assist planning, reduce distractions, encourage effort, prompt self-evaluation and gradually withdraw scaffolding. Intrusive practices impose procedures, provide answers, intensify performance pressure or replace the learner's cognitive activity. The evidence therefore suggests that the quality and adjustment of parental support are more consequential than its frequency. However, the reviewed designs are predominantly correlational or synthetic and do not establish a causal effect of parental heteroregulation on mathematical efficiency. The review proposes a dual-pathway analytical model and recommends longitudinal, multi-informant and intervention studies involving learners, parents and teachers, particularly in African secondary-school contexts. Psychoeducational programmes should help parents guide mathematical activity while progressively transferring responsibility to the learner.

parental heteroregulation, mathematical efficiency, cognitive self-regulation

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