Student Performance Analysis Using

Power BI
Submitted by: [Your Name]

Course: [Course Name]

University: [University Name]

Date: [Submission Date]

 1. Introduction

In today’s data-driven world, understanding patterns within student performance data has
become essential for educational institutions aiming to improve learning outcomes. This
report provides a detailed and systematic analysis of student academic performance using
Microsoft Power BI, a leading business intelligence tool renowned for its capabilities in
interactive data visualization and analysis.

The primary objective of this project is to explore how various demographic and external
factors influence the academic achievements of students. Specifically, the analysis focuses
on variables such as gender, race/ethnicity, parental level of education, lunch type, and
participation in test preparation courses. These factors are examined in relation to
student scores in three core academic areas: Mathematics, Reading, and Writing.

By leveraging Power BI’s DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) for calculating custom
measures and its robust visual analytics capabilities, this report uncovers meaningful
insights and trends that are otherwise hidden in raw data. It enables educators, policy
makers, and researchers to identify performance disparities among different student groups
and make informed decisions based on evidence rather than assumptions.

Moreover, the findings from this project highlight the importance of data literacy in
education and showcase how advanced tools like Power BI can play a transformative role
in improving academic policies, identifying at-risk students, and enhancing the overall
learning environment. This report serves not only as a demonstration of technical skill in
data analytics but also as a case study in applying technology for social and academic
betterment.
2. Problem Statement

Academic performance among students is influenced by a wide range of factors that extend
beyond classroom instruction. These include socio-demographic characteristics, such as
gender, race or ethnicity, parental education, economic background, and access to
academic support resources like test preparation courses. As a result, student
achievement is not uniform and often shows significant variation across different groups
and learning environments.

Traditional evaluation methods, such as raw test scores or annual reports, often fail to
capture the nuanced patterns and underlying factors that contribute to this variability.
Without a structured approach to analyzing educational data, educators and decision-
makers may overlook important insights, leading to ineffective interventions or
generalized academic strategies that do not address the needs of specific student groups.

This project seeks to address this challenge by using Power BI to perform a data-driven
analysis of student performance. The goal is to uncover hidden trends, correlations, and
disparities in the academic results of students by examining key influencing factors. By
identifying relationships between variables—such as how parental education level
impacts scores, or how test preparation participation affects academic outcomes—
stakeholders can make targeted and evidence-based decisions to better support students
academically, emotionally, and socially.

Ultimately, the problem lies not just in the performance gap itself, but in the lack of
accessible, visual, and interpretable insights that would otherwise empower educators
to personalize learning experiences and create more equitable academic environments.
3. Dataset Description

The dataset used for this project is a publicly available student performance dataset sourced
from Kaggle, a well-known platform for data science competitions and open data resources.
It contains detailed records of individual students and their corresponding scores in core
academic subjects, along with various demographic and socio-economic attributes.

The key variables in the dataset include:

 Gender: Indicates whether the student is male or female. This allows for the
examination of gender-based performance trends and disparities across subjects.

 Race/Ethnicity: Categorized into five groups (Group A to Group E), this variable
represents the self-identified racial or ethnic background of the students. It enables
an analysis of academic outcomes across different cultural and social demographics.

 Parental Level of Education: This variable denotes the highest level of education
attained by the student's parent(s), ranging from some high school to master's
degree. It serves as a proxy for the level of academic support or value placed on
education within the household.

 Lunch Type: Indicates whether the student receives a standard lunch or is part of a
free/reduced lunch program. This information can be used to approximate the
student’s economic background and examine the correlation between nutritional
access and academic performance.

 Test Preparation Course: A binary variable showing whether the student

completed a test preparation course. It helps assess the impact of formal academic
preparation on test scores.

 Scores in Math, Reading, and Writing: These are the primary academic
performance indicators in the dataset, with each score measured on a scale from 0
to 100. These scores are analyzed individually and in combination to measure
overall student performance.

The dataset is well-structured and includes approximately 1,000 observations, making it

suitable for statistical analysis and visualization. It allows for the exploration of patterns
and relationships between student background characteristics and their academic
achievement, providing valuable insights into educational performance trends.
4. Project Objectives

The overarching aim of this project is to leverage the capabilities of Power BI to analyze
and interpret student performance data through meaningful visualizations, customized
metrics, and interactive dashboards. The project sets out several specific objectives that are
aligned with both technical goals and educational relevance. Each objective is explained in
detail below:

1. Analyze Score Distribution by Gender and Parental Education

Understanding how student performance differs based on gender and parental

educational background is crucial for identifying equity issues in education. Research has
shown that these two variables often influence a student’s access to resources, confidence in
academics, and motivation to succeed.

This objective seeks to:

 Compare the average performance of male and female students in Math, Reading,
and Writing.

 Investigate whether female students outperform males in language-related subjects,

and whether male students show greater proficiency in Math, as suggested in some
prior studies.

 Evaluate the correlation between a parent’s highest level of education (ranging from
high school to master’s degree) and the student’s performance.

 Analyze whether students with parents holding higher academic qualifications

consistently perform better than their peers.

Through these insights, educators and policymakers can identify whether additional
support needs to be tailored based on gender or household academic background, ensuring
fairness and improved outcomes.

2. Examine the Effectiveness of Test Preparation Courses

Test preparation programs are designed to improve student outcomes by familiarizing

learners with exam formats, question types, and time management strategies. However, the
true effectiveness of these courses often varies based on delivery, frequency, and student
engagement.

This objective involves:

  Segmenting students into two categories: those who completed the test preparation
course and those who did not.

 Comparing the average Math, Reading, and Writing scores across these two groups.

 Determining if test preparation courses have a statistically significant impact on

performance.

 Visualizing improvements (or lack thereof) using bar charts, pie charts, and average
performance cards.

The analysis will help answer critical questions such as:

Does completing a test preparation course consistently lead to higher scores?

Are some subject areas more influenced by preparation than others?

The findings can influence decisions regarding the implementation and funding of such
academic enhancement programs.

3. Compare Performance Across Subject Areas

Students may not perform uniformly across all subjects. Some might excel in quantitative
reasoning but struggle with language comprehension, while others might show the opposite
trend. Identifying these trends is vital for:

 Understanding where the student body, as a whole, is excelling or falling behind.

 Designing subject-specific intervention strategies or tutoring programs.

 Tailoring teaching methodologies based on performance patterns.

This objective focuses on:

 Evaluating average scores across Math, Reading, and Writing.

 Calculating subject-specific performance gaps (e.g., Math vs Reading).

 Identifying which subjects have the highest and lowest overall performance scores.

 Creating visualizations like clustered bar charts or radar plots to present

comparative performance.

This analysis provides insights into curriculum effectiveness and potential gaps in
instruction or student engagement per subject.
4. Develop a Dashboard with Interactive Features for Stakeholders

One of the key strengths of Power BI is its ability to create interactive dashboards that
allow users to explore data dynamically. A well-designed dashboard empowers
stakeholders such as:

 School administrators

 Teachers and academic coordinators

 Education researchers

 Policy decision-makers

This objective includes:

 Designing slicers and filters based on gender, test preparation status, parental
education, and race/ethnicity.

 Creating a cohesive layout with card visuals for KPIs, bar and pie charts for
distributions, and trend visuals for comparative performance.

 Ensuring that the dashboard is intuitive and can be interpreted by non-technical

users.

The dashboard not only serves as a reporting tool but also functions as a strategic asset for
decision-making, resource allocation, and academic planning.
5. Tools & Technologies

To effectively analyze student performance and build an interactive, insightful dashboard,

the project utilizes a combination of powerful tools and technologies. Each tool plays a
specific role in the data analysis life cycle, from data acquisition and transformation to
modeling, visualization, and sharing.

1. Microsoft Power BI Desktop

Microsoft Power BI Desktop is the core platform used in this project. It is a business
intelligence and data visualization tool developed by Microsoft, offering advanced
features for interactive dashboards, data exploration, and report generation.

Power BI was chosen due to its:

 User-friendly interface, suitable even for users with limited coding experience.

 Extensive range of visualizations, including bar charts, pie charts, line graphs, and
KPI cards.

 Ability to integrate data from multiple sources including Excel, CSV, databases, and
web APIs.

 Real-time dashboard capabilities and responsive visual filtering (cross-filtering and

cross-highlighting).

In this project, Power BI was used to:

 Import and clean the student dataset.

 Create custom DAX measures.

 Build dynamic visualizations.

 Design an interactive dashboard for educational stakeholders.

2. DAX (Data Analysis Expressions)

DAX, or Data Analysis Expressions, is the formula language used in Power BI for creating
calculated columns, measures, and custom aggregations.

Key reasons for using DAX in this project include:

  Ability to perform advanced statistical analysis and create KPIs.

 Customization of formulas beyond default aggregation (SUM, AVG, etc.).

 Dynamic calculations that adjust based on filters and user interactions.

Examples of DAX used:

 Overall Performance = AVERAGE(math_score + reading_score + writing_score)

 Performance Gap = ABS(AVERAGE(math_score) - AVERAGE(reading_score))

 Test Preparation Impact = IF([test_preparation_course] = "completed", "Yes", "No")

These DAX formulas enabled precise tracking of academic patterns that would not be
possible through default functions alone.

3. Data Modeling

Data modeling is a critical part of Power BI development. Although this project used a
single-table dataset (flat file), thoughtful modeling was still necessary to:

 Define data types correctly (e.g., categorical vs numeric).

 Create calculated columns and hierarchies.

 Establish field relationships for filtering (if multi-table models are used in the
future).

 Improve report performance through efficient data structure.

The dataset was modeled to ensure smooth interactions across visuals, allowing users to
slice the data by gender, parental education, or test preparation status and instantly view
the changes across charts.

4. CSV File Processing

The original dataset was provided in CSV (Comma-Separated Values) format. CSV is a
lightweight, human-readable file format widely used for sharing data.

The steps involved in CSV processing included:

 Importing the dataset into Power BI.

 Verifying headers and ensuring proper delimiter detection.

 Checking for null or missing values.

  Converting columns to appropriate data types (e.g., string, number, boolean).

 Renaming columns to user-friendly labels.

Preprocessing the CSV ensured data integrity and prepared the dataset for effective analysis
in Power BI.

5. GitHub for Version Control

GitHub is a widely used platform for version control and collaboration based on Git. In this
project, GitHub was used to:

 Host the Power BI .pbix file, raw CSV data, and project documentation.

 Maintain version history for iterative changes to the dashboard and DAX formulas.

 Provide public access for reviewers or academic evaluators to explore the source
files.

 Showcase the project in a professional portfolio or resume for academic and career
advancement.

GitHub enabled transparent development and facilitated sharing of this analytical work
with wider audiences.
6. Data Cleaning & Transformation

Before importing the dataset into Power BI, it was cleaned using:
- Data type conversion
- Removal of missing values
- Standardization of categorical labels
7. Data Model

In Power BI, the cleaned CSV was imported as a single table.

Calculated columns and DAX measures were created for deeper insight.
No relationships with other tables were necessary for this analysis.
8. DAX Measures

Key DAX measures created:

- Overall Score = AVERAGE(math_score + reading_score + writing_score)
- Score Gap = math_score - reading_score
- Passed Test Prep = IF(test_preparation_course = "completed", 1, 0)
9. Dashboard Design

The dashboard was designed to include:

- Slicers for Gender, Education, Race
- Pie charts for completion rates
- Bar charts for subject comparison
- Card visual for average overall performance
10. Visual 1: Overall Scores by Gender

Shows average performance in math, reading, and writing grouped by gender.

A slight difference was observed in reading and writing scores.
11. Visual 2: Impact of Test Preparation

Compares scores of students who completed the course vs those who didn’t.
Completion correlates with improved performance in all subjects.
12. Visual 3: Influence of Parental Education

A bar chart showing average scores based on parents' highest education level.
Children of parents with higher education performed better on average.
13. Visual 4: Score Distribution by Lunch Type

Pie chart and stacked column chart showing students on free/reduced lunch scored lower
than those on standard lunch.
14. Visual 5: Racial/Ethnic Group Analysis

Displays how average scores differ across racial/ethnic groups.

Shows the need for equitable access and support for underperforming groups.
15. Insight Summary

- Students with completed prep courses scored significantly better

- Gender gaps were narrow, especially in reading
- Parental education strongly influenced performance
16. Limitations

- Dataset size limited to ~1000 students

- No socioeconomic or psychological factors considered
- No tracking of long-term academic performance
17. Recommendations

- Increase access to preparation resources for all students

- Focus support efforts on students with less parental educational support
- Conduct larger and longitudinal studies to validate findings
18. Future Work

Future improvements may include:

- Larger datasets
- Addition of behavioral metrics
- Integration with other educational dashboards
19. Conclusion

The Power BI dashboard successfully helped to identify and visualize key factors affecting
student performance.
With such tools, educators and policy-makers can better target their efforts.
20. References

- https://github.com/AhmedFathy-Power-BI-Analyst/Student-Performance
- Power BI Official Documentation
- Kaggle Student Performance Dataset
- DAX Guide (https://dax.guide)