Unveiling Exam Success: Insights into Student Performance
Education shapes futures, but what factors play the most significant role in student success? This project explores student performance through data from a Kaggle dataset and a survey conducted among students from AUB and other universities. The goal is to uncover patterns and factors that influence academic achievement to inform educational strategies and mental health support.
The analysis highlights the prevalent academic and emotional challenges faced by students, such as high stress, poor mental well-being, inconsistent study habits, and inadequate resources. These factors collectively contribute to low academic performance and emotional instability. Using data-driven insights, the evidence demonstrates that high stress negatively impacts GPA, as shown in stress and exam score correlations. Furthermore, inconsistent study habits, particularly studying for 1-2 hours daily, lead to heightened variability in mental well-being, reflecting emotional instability. Parental influence also emerges as a critical factor, with students from higher-educated families performing better academically. These findings underline the need to address interconnected academic, psychological, and environmental barriers to improve student outcomes comprehensively.
These findings guided our exploration of the Kaggle dataset visualized using Tableau.
Parental Education and Performance
- Students with more educated parents tend to perform better across subjects. This suggests the importance of parental involvement and resources.
Gender Performance Trends
- Female students excel in reading and writing, while math scores are more balanced across genders.
Stress and Mental Well-Being
- Most students report high exam stress (peaking at 4 on a 5-point scale) but average mental well-being centered at 3.
- Mental well-being is more consistent for students with 7-8 hours of sleep.
Study Habits
- Students who start preparing 1-2 weeks before exams show a common study pattern, with 1-2 hours of study daily being most prevalent
These findings guided our exploration of the Survey dataset visualized using Python.
The visuals show the distribution that most students report high exam stress peaking at 4 and average mental well-being centered at 3.
The variation in study hours across different age groups, highlighting that younger age groups, particularly those aged 18-22 and 23-26, study more hours on average.
The different types of meals students consume before exams, with light and balanced meals being the most common choices.
The distribution of weekly exercise hours across different age groups, highlighting that younger students (18-22 and 23-26) are more active, with a higher proportion exercising 1-3 hours weekly.
The relationship between daily study hours and how many weeks in advance students start preparing for exams, revealing that the most common study pattern involves starting exam prep 1-2 weeks in advance, particularly among those studying 1-2 hours per day.
Comparison of mental well-being scores across different daily study hour groups, highlighting higher variability in the 1-2 hours category. This suggests inconsistency in how students feel emotionally and mentally when studying for this duration, in contrast to other groups.
The relationship between sleep duration and mental well-being scores. It shows that students who sleep 7-8 hours generally report higher and more consistent well-being.
The distribution of exam stress levels based on the number of hours students sleep per night. It reveals that students who sleep for 7-8 hours tend to report higher stress levels.
GPA distributions for different age groups, with older students (Over 30) displaying a wider range of GPAs, suggesting greater variability in academic performance compared to more stable GPA distributions among younger groups.
The distribution of GPA across different levels of study, showing the widest variability among undergraduate students, while high school, Graduate and PhD students have more consistent GPA ranges.
The variation in exam stress levels among different GPA ranges. Higher stress variability is evident in the 2.5 – 2.8 GPA group, suggesting inconsistent stress experiences, while students with a GPA of 3.7 – 4.0 tend to report lower and more consistent stress levels.
Audience Questions Addressed
- For Mental Health Counselors:
- How can we better support students who experience high stress levels despite adequate sleep?
- What strategies would you recommend for students whose mental well-being fluctuates based on their study habits?
- How important is it for students to balance study hours with self-care to maintain mental well-being?
- For Psychology Professors:
- How might high stress levels affect a student’s ability to retain and recall information during exams?
- What psychological factors could cause inconsistent well-being among students with similar study hours?
- How does the perception of parental expectations influence academic stress and performance?
Conclusion and Recommendation
This project explores the endless of challenges faced by students, particularly the impact of stress on their academics and mental health. Stress levels, influenced by factors like poor study habits and parental expectations, were shown to impair cognitive abilities and affect exam performance. By analyzing data from Kaggle, surveys, and expert insights, the project highlights emotional disparities among students with similar study habits, the role of parental involvement, and how stress interacts with physical activity.
The findings stress the immediate need for targeted interventions to tackle these issues. Visual data from Tableau and Python highlighted the harmful effects of stress, while feedback from a psychology expert shed light on how cortisol, family dynamics, and time management affect student performance. Recommendations highlight integrating stress management resources, promoting balanced study habits, ensuring equal access to resources, and encouraging routines that include study time, physical activity, and rest to enhance student well-being and performance.
To boost academic achievement and emotional health, schools should adopt stress management techniques, partner with mental health professionals, and encourage healthy lifestyles for students. Involving parents in the educational process and providing academic resources are essential as well. This project champions a holistic educational strategy that blends academic success with emotional support, fostering an environment where students can thrive both in their studies and personal lives.
“What we learn with pleasure, we never forget.”
– Alfred Mercier
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