Comparative Analysis of Machine Learning Models in Predicting Academic Outcomes: Insights and Implications for Educational Data Analytics

In the evolving landscape of educational research, the predictive analysis of student performance using data science has garnered significant interest. This study investigates the influence of diverse factors on academic outcomes, ranging from personal demographics to socioeconomic conditions, to enhance educational strategies and support mechanisms. We employed a diverse ml models to analyze a information containing academic records and socioeconomic information. The models tested include Logistic Regression, Random Forest (RF), Gradient Boosting (GB), Support Vector Machines (SVC), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Gaussian Naive Bayes, and Decision Trees. The process involved comprehensive data preprocessing, exploratory analysis, model training, and evaluation based on metrics such as precision, recall, accuracy, and $F 1$ score. The results indicate that ensemble methods, specifically RF and GB, demonstrate superior efficacy in accurately predicting categories of student performance such as ’Enrolled,’ ’Graduated,’ and ’Dropped Out.’ These models excelled in handling the complex interplay of varied predictors affecting student success. The results further underline the potential of advanced ensemble ML techniques in significantly outperforming the prediction accuracy in the academic domain, hence facilitating the tailoring of educational interventions to foster improved engagement and better outcomes for students. This has provided a comparative analysis of the methods that guide the future application of predictive analytics in education.