A heuristic approach to predict Malaysian students academic performance

Abstract

There are various methods used in Malaysian schools to determine the academic performance of their students. The most common method used in Malaysian schools is the ‘Headcount program’. Using the method in Headcount program, teachers make prediction of the students’ academic performance by comparing the students’ current academic performance against the actual tests scores. However, the method used in the Headcount program is intuitive-based and not standardized among the students. The aim of the research is to develop a method, an algorithm or a heuristic that can predict the academic performance of the students to a given degree of accuracy. The data was acquired through a group of teachers using “Headcount program” forms. The output of this research is the development of a mathematical formula that can predict academic performance of the students’ with greater accuracy as compared to the currently intuitive-based method used in the Headcount program.