Academic engagement and grit as correlates of academic burnout among form three students in Nyandarua County, Keny

Abstract

Academic burnout is a condition that arises from students’ feelings of exhaustion and incompetence in academics. The academic burnout might be due to multiple factors such as school assignments, and continuous assessment tests among other examinations. These may lead to academic disinterest and students’ unexplained absenteeism. This study intended to establish the relationship between academic engagement and academic burnout among form three students in Kipipiri Sub-county in Nyandarua County, Kenya. Students experiencing academic burnout may face maladjustment that may seriously affect their academic path. Students in Nyandarua County secondary schools experience academic burnout. The aim of this study therefore, was to determine the relationship between academic engagement and academic burnout. Work engagement theory was used to guide this study. A correlation research design was employed. Form three students were the target population of 1,152 (572 boys and 580 girls) from 8 secondary schools in Kipipiri Sub-county. The sampling methods that were used in the study are purposive sampling, proportionate sampling and simple random sampling. The sample comprised 349 participants from 8 secondary schools. Research tools used consisted of the Utrecht work engagement scale meant for students and the academic burnout scale. A pilot study was carried out using 36 students selected randomly in one of the schools within Kipipiri Sub-county. To ascertain the validity of the research instrument, the researcher presented them to experts (supervisors) for scrutiny. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was used to ascertain the reliability of the research instruments. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS version 25) was used to compute inferential and descriptive statistics. The study established that there exists a significant negative relationship between academic engagement and academic burnout. r(345) = -.68, p< .05. The study recommended that teachers should come up with guidance programs and other more relevant interventions to help students boost their academic engagement in order to reduce academic burnout.