An analysis of mathematical errors in business mathematics

Business Mathematics (MAT112) subject is mainly designed to develop the mathematical knowledge required by the students to encounter the demands of business operations. The course basically provides a compact analysis of the most fundamental and commonly occurring business conditions. Amongst the topics listed in the course, Compound Interest and Annuity are considered as the topics which have contributed a deficient performance of students in their test or examination. This study attempts to analyze the errors done by students in MAT112. The study was conducted on groups of Diploma in Business Studies, Diploma in Banking Studies, Diploma in Administration and Public Policy, and Diploma in Planting Industry Management students’ at one of higher level of institution in Pahang. In order to achieve the objective of the study, data of 600 final examinations scripts was collected. From the analysis of the study, mathematical errors and misconceptions were described. The analysis of the results has suggested that students’ misconceptions seemed to have a significant impact on their performance in the test or examination.