Relationship Between Parenting Styles and Academic Performance in Mathematics of Senior Secondary School Students in Imo Sate, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between parenting styles and academic performance of students in mathematics of senior secondary school students in Owerri Municipal Council, Imo State. The purpose of the study was to identify the parenting styles; determine the academic performance of students in mathematics and to ascertain the significant relationships between parenting styles and academic performance of students in mathematics. Research questions and hypotheses were developed from the specific objectives of the study. This research involved only SS2 students of selected eleven public secondary schools in Owerri Municipal Council in Imo State, Nigeria. The population of the study was the total of 4,483 SS2 students while the sample size was 483 students representing about 10%. Parenting Perception Styles Questionnaire (PPSQ) along with 40 standardized objectives mathematics test questions were administered to the 483 sampled students using balloting without replacement. 464 questionnaires representing 97.4% were returned. The responses (data) were collected, weighted and analyzed using mean score rating average and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient. The findings of this study revealed that all the parenting styles have no significant relationship with academic performance of student in mathematics and this implied that stakeholders should not pay too much attention to the issue of parenting styles when dealing with teaching and learning mathematics. The research recommends that stakeholders should not place too high importance on the relationship between parenting style and academic performance in mathematics with regards to increasing academic performance in mathematics senior secondary school students. The research further advocates that parents should explore innovative strategies beyond traditional parenting to enhance their children’s academic performance in mathematics. It emphasizes the importance of strong collaboration between parents and teachers in developing and implementing effective approaches to support students’ success in the subject.