Prevention of children’s burnout at school through the tutoring and guidance process. A structural equation model analysis

Abstract

The school burnout of children, defined as physical and mental exhaustion due to a lack of adjustment to the educational context, constitutes a serious problem in contemporary education. Thus, the determination of the elements that influence it and the possible strategies for avoiding it are key in the process of improving children’s well-being. A descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 569 children aged 8 to 13 at eight primary education schools in Granada (Spain). With the aim of examining the association between the possible exhaustion of children and planned tutoring and guidance activities, a structural equation model (SEM) as the analytical technique was used. The results show good fit indices for the model (comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.955; normalised fit index (NFI) = 0.956; incremental fit index (IFI) = 0.946; root mean squared error approximation (RMSEA) = 0.089), which reflects the need for tutoring and guidance activities that are infused throughout the entire teaching process in order to preserve children’s well-being.