Cognitive Fatigue Among Santri in Dual-Curriculum Islamic Boarding Schools
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31538/tijie.v6i4.2082Keywords:
Cognitive fatigue, Dual Curriculum, Islamic boarding school, Qur’anic memorization, adolescent mental healthAbstract
Cognitive fatigue has emerged as a critical concern in educational settings that require sustained mental effort, particularly in Islamic boarding schools implementing dual-curriculum systems. Santri are required to balance intensive Qur’anic memorization with formal general education, creating substantial cognitive demands that may affect learning effectiveness and mental well-being. This study aims to examine the level of cognitive fatigue among santri and to identify key contributing factors within a dual-curriculum pesantren context. A quantitative descriptive design was employed involving 120 students aged 13–18 at Darul Iman Islamic Boarding School, North Lombok, Indonesia. Data were collected using the Pediatric Cognitive Fatigue Scale (PCFS), supported by classroom observations and analysis of study duration, sleep patterns, and memorization load. The findings indicate that most students experience moderate to high levels of cognitive fatigue. Fatigue levels were strongly associated with prolonged daily study time exceeding ten hours, reduced sleep duration, and high Qur’anic memorization intensity, while gender and age were not significant predictors. These results highlight the cumulative cognitive risks of extended academic engagement without adequate rest. This study contributes to the limited empirical literature on student cognitive fatigue in religious education environments. The findings imply the need for pesantren administrators and policymakers to redesign learning schedules by incorporating structured rest periods, balanced memorization targets, and sleep protection strategies to promote healthier and more sustainable learning environments for adolescents in dual-curriculum Islamic boarding schools.
Downloads
References
Ahmed, M., Umar, I. A., Azkiya, R., & Ghofur, S. A. (2023). Stressors and Coping Mechanism Strategies of Islamic Boarding School Students. International Journal of Academic Studies in Science and Education, 1(1), 56–70. https://doi.org/10.55549/ijasse.8
Ansori, A., Zein, U. N., & Umam, L. H. (2025). Santri’s Perceptions of Discomfort in the Learning Environment and Its Impact on Cognitive Barriers in Arabic Language Learning. Al-Himam: Jurnal Pendidikan Bahasa Arab, 4(2), 73–86. https://doi.org/10.51590/alhimam.v4i2.1070
Anto, I. R. (2025). Child Exploitation As A Human Rights Violation: A Juridical Analysis In The Context Of National And International Law In Indonesia. Jurnal Kajian Ilmu Hukum, 4(1), 146–158. https://doi.org/10.55583/jkih.v4i1.1406
Arif, M., Fatonah, S., & Billah Faza Mb, A. (2020). The Dynamic Survival Of Pesantren In Indonesia A Brief Explanation For Development Of The Traditional Muslim Education. Sunan Kalijaga International Journal on Islamic Educational Research, 4(1), 44–62. https://doi.org/10.14421/skijier.2020.41.04
Behrens, M., Gube, M., Chaabene, H., Prieske, O., Zenon, A., Broscheid, K.-C., Schega, L., Husmann, F., & Weippert, M. (2023a). Fatigue and Human Performance: An Updated Framework. Sports Medicine, 53(1), 7–31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-022-01748-2
Behrens, M., Gube, M., Chaabene, H., Prieske, O., Zenon, A., Broscheid, K.-C., Schega, L., Husmann, F., & Weippert, M. (2023b). Fatigue and Human Performance: An Updated Framework. Sports Medicine, 53(1), 7–31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-022-01748-2
Benkirane, O., Delwiche, B., Mairesse, O., & Peigneux, P. (2022). Impact of Sleep Fragmentation on Cognition and Fatigue. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(23), 15485. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315485
Blair, C. (2017). Educating executive function. WIREs Cognitive Science, 8(1–2), e1403. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1403
Bloomfield, J., & Fisher, M. J. (2019). Quantitative research design. Journal of the Australasian Rehabilitation Nurses Association, 22(2), 27–30. https://doi.org/10.3316/informit.738299924514584
Creswell, J. W., Hanson, W. E., Clark Plano, V. L., & Morales, A. (2007). Qualitative Research Designs: Selection and Implementation. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(2), 236–264. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000006287390
Creswell, J. W., & Hirose, M. (2019). Mixed methods and survey research in family medicine and community health. Family Medicine and Community Health, 7(2), e000086. https://doi.org/10.1136/fmch-2018-000086
Dehais, F., Lafont, A., Roy, R., & Fairclough, S. (2020). A Neuroergonomics Approach to Mental Workload, Engagement and Human Performance. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.00268
Fadhilah, N. (2022). Children’s Boarding School in Indonesia: Examining Psychological and Social Dynamics in the Perspective of Gender-Friendly Islamic Boarding Schools. Muwazah, 14(1), 117–138. https://doi.org/10.28918/muwazah.v14i1.7257
García, A., Angel, J. D., Borrani, J., Ramirez, C., & Valdez, P. (2021). Sleep deprivation effects on basic cognitive processes: Which components of attention, working memory, and executive functions are more susceptible to the lack of sleep? Sleep Science, 14(2), 107–118. https://doi.org/10.5935/1984-0063.20200049
Gilsoul, J., Libertiaux, V., & Collette, F. (2022). Cognitive fatigue in young, middle-aged, and older: Breaks as a way to recover. Applied Psychology, 71(4), 1565–1597. https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12358
Goble, G. H., Van Ooyik, J., Robertson, T., & Roberts, G. J. (2021). Effects on Students’ Academic and Non-Academic Outcomes and Student Participation in Theatre Arts: A Research Synthesis. Educational Research: Theory and Practice, 32(3), 1–22.
Harto, J., Setiawan, D., Saepuddin, A., Hudalloh, & Asyraf, M. (2025). Reconfiguring Pesantren Education: The Dialectic between Tradition, Modernity, and Transnational Islam. Mozaic : Islam Nusantara, 11(2), 147–160. https://doi.org/10.47776/mozaic.v11i2.1818
Jirout, J., LoCasale-Crouch, J., Turnbull, K., Gu, Y., Cubides, M., Garzione, S., Evans, T. M., Weltman, A. L., & Kranz, S. (2019). How Lifestyle Factors Affect Cognitive and Executive Function and the Ability to Learn in Children. Nutrients, 11(8), 1953. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11081953
Kayser, K. C., Puig, V. A., & Estepp, J. R. (2022). Predicting and mitigating fatigue effects due to sleep deprivation: A review. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 16. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2022.930280
Kunasegaran, K., Ismail, A. M. H., Ramasamy, S., Gnanou, J. V., Caszo, B. A., & Chen, P. L. (2023). Understanding mental fatigue and its detection: A comparative analysis of assessments and tools. PeerJ, 11, e15744. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.15744
Levingston, J. K. (2023). A Moral Case for Play in K-12 Schools: The Urgency of Advancing Moral Ecologies of Play. Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.
Martin, K., Meeusen, R., Thompson, K. G., Keegan, R., & Rattray, B. (2018). Mental Fatigue Impairs Endurance Performance: A Physiological Explanation. Sports Medicine, 48(9), 2041–2051. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-018-0946-9
McMorris, T., Barwood, M., Hale, B. J., Dicks, M., & Corbett, J. (2018). Cognitive fatigue effects on physical performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Physiology & Behavior, 188, 103–107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.01.029
Milyavskaya, M., Galla, B. M., Inzlicht, M., & Duckworth, A. L. (2021). More Effort, Less Fatigue: The Role of Interest in Increasing Effort and Reducing Mental Fatigue. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.755858
Muttaqin, M. I., Hambali, M., Ismail, A. binti, Mulyadi, M., & Hady, M. S. (2024). Optimizing Mental Health in Islamic Boarding School Students: Balancing Physical and Mental Endurance for Effective Qur’an Memorization. Al-Tanzim: Jurnal Manajemen Pendidikan Islam, 8(2), 675–688. https://doi.org/10.33650/al-tanzim.v8i2.8470
Nurfaisal, N., Sunengko, S., & Abbas, M. F. F. (2024). Effective Curriculum Management in Islamic Primary Education: A Case Study of Integrated Islamic Schools. AL-ISHLAH: Jurnal Pendidikan, 16(4), 4578–4587. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v16i4.6211
Rahmawati, N., & Dwijayanti, I. (2024). Empowering Children of TPQ Nurul Iman Warak in Learning to Read Quran. Jurnal Pengabdian Masyarakat Inovatif, 2(2), 57–65. https://doi.org/10.33751/jpmi.v2i2.136
Ramadani, M., Purnomo, H., & Akbar, N. I. A. (2025). The relationship between social adaptation, academic stress, and homesickness in Islamic boarding schools: Moderating effects of prior separation experience and family attachment. Psikis : Jurnal Psikologi Islami, 11(2), 241–256. https://doi.org/10.19109/psikis.v11i2.31050
Riccardi, J. S., & Ciccia, A. (2021). Cognitive Fatigue in Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury: A Meta-Analysis and Scoping Review. The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 36(4), 226. https://doi.org/10.1097/HTR.0000000000000644
Ropovik, I. (2014). Do executive functions predict the ability to learn problem-solving principles? Intelligence, 44, 64–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2014.03.002
Simon, J., Takács, E., Orosz, G., Berki, B., & Winkler, I. (2020). Short-term cognitive fatigue effect on auditory temporal order judgments. Experimental Brain Research, 238(2), 305–319. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-019-05712-x
Smith, A. P. (2018). Cognitive fatigue and the well-being and academic attainment of university students. Journal of Education, Society and Behavioral Science. https://doi.org/10.9734/JESBS/2018/39529
Stapor, K. (2020). Descriptive and Inferential Statistics. In K. Stapor (Ed.), Introduction to Probabilistic and Statistical Methods with Examples in R (pp. 63–131). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45799-0_2
Sweller, J., van Merriënboer, J. J. G., & Paas, F. (2019). Cognitive Architecture and Instructional Design: 20 Years Later. Educational Psychology Review, 31(2), 261–292. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-019-09465-5
Sweller, J., van Merrienboer, J. J. G., & Paas, F. G. W. C. (1998). Cognitive Architecture and Instructional Design. Educational Psychology Review, 10(3), 251–296. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022193728205
Tayeb, A. (2018). Islamic Education in Indonesia and Malaysia: Shaping Minds, Saving Souls. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351116862
Wang, S., Qin, J., & Li, D. (2024). Academic Pressure or Emotional Detachment? The Complex Effect of Compulsory Boarding Due to the School Merger Policy. School Mental Health, 16(4), 1321–1335. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-024-09698-y
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Rohani Rohani, Muhammad Ali Gunawan, Camila Fatah Suroyya, Suciptono
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Tafkir: Interdisciplinary Journal of Islamic Education is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at http://pasca.jurnalikhac.ac.id/index.php/tijie/index.
