TEACHER COMPETENCIES AND STUDENT NEEDS IN UNIVERSITY GUIDANCE AND TUTORING: THE CASE OF ECUADOR

Abstract

The new university teaching profile, placing greater emphasis on students’ formation and needs, highlights the need for a new approach to university tutoring as an integral part of the educational function and as a supportive space to accompany students on their journey towards learning. The main objective of this research is to confirm and analyse the psychometric properties and factorial structure of the “Questionnaire for the Assessment of Guidance and Tutoring in Higher Education - Teaching Version” (Q-AGT-P) scale, to measure university professors’ perceptions of the delivery of guidance and tutoring at the universities in the province of Manabí (Ecuador). The sample was made up of 398 professors from four universities, and the results show the suitability of the theoretical model proposed and support the structure of 2 factors: students’ needs regarding tutoring and the educational skills required from the tutor. The various indices of goodness of fit, reliability and internal consistence of the model were considered satisfactory. Of the main conclusions reached, it is possible to highlight the attainment of a valid and reliable instrument with which to measure the development of tutoring and guidance at Latin American universities, the professors’ high evaluation of tutoring and their perception of the great need for skills with which to carry out guidance and tutoring. Finally, it was concluded that it is necessary to deal with students’ needs beyond those concerning their academic education and to reinforce professors’ training in skills related to guidance and university tutoring.