1.1.Background of the Study

Since one of the goals oftertiary institutions is to contribute to the improvement of the quality and standard of higher education, the success in the creation of human capital has been a subject of continuous analysis. Hence the prediction of students’ success is very important to these higher education institutions, because the purpose of any teaching process is to meet students’ educational needs and enhance overall student’s academic success. In this regard, important data and informationare gathered on a regular basis after which they are used in the prediction of students’ academic performance (EdinOsmanbegovic, 2012).

Measuring and predicting the academic performance of students has been a challenging task since students’ academic performance depends on diverse factors such as personal, socio-economic, psychological and other environmental variables. But the prediction of student’s performance is a very important endeavor as it helps the student and teachers to minimizepoor academic performances and produce better educated and enlightened students in order to make the society a better place. With the help of performance prediction, a failing student can be identified and helped by putting all the factors affecting the student into consideration and providing solutions to counter this factors so as to facilitate better performance (Brijesh Kumar Bhardwaj and Saurabh Pal, 2011).

1.2. Statement of the Problem

Without adequate measures to curb the existing problem of persistent students’ failure, it will continue to remain a major problem for higher institutions. But with the analysis of the factors which are socio-economic, psychological and environmental, a headway can be made towards curbing the problem of student failure.

1.3. Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of this project is to predict a student’s performance using the decision tree method.

 The specific objectives are:

1.      To identify various factors that affect the performance of students in their academic endeavors.

2.       To use the identified factors as well as the student’s past performance to predict the future performance of the student.

3.      To develop a model which can predict student’s academic performance using decision tree method.

1.4. Scope and limitation of the Study

This project work titled STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE PREDICTION USING DECISION TREE attempts to analyze those factors that affect the students academically. Furthermore, this work predicts the future academic performance of students but does not automatically address these problems as the tutors and teachers and even the students themselves still need to take steps towards curbing the performance problem by eliminating this factors themselves.

1.5.Significance of the Study

1.      To help teachers and tutors identify weak and strong students so teachers can lay more emphasis on instructions and procedures when dealing with the weak students

2.      To help the students identify and eliminate those factors either found in the student himself or the school or the society.

3.      To help the tutors and teachers find solutions to the problems affecting the weaker students so as to enhance overall academic performance