The avatar feature is a fun and interactive way to personalise their learning experience and see their progress as they complete learning activities. It allows learners to choose an avatar that represents themselves or their interests.
In this article, we'll go over everything you need to know about using avatars on our platform, including how to create and customise your avatar, how to use your avatar to interact with the platform, and some tips and tricks for making the most of this feature:
All about Avatars - Generic information about this feature from learners' perspective
Setting up Avatars - Instructions on how to set up Avatars in Control
Good to know - Remarks to keep in mind
All about Avatars
Learners have the opportunity to personalise their avatars. To choose their avatar, learners can head to their Profile page and select their favourite avatar together with their favourite background colour. They'll also be able to see their current experience points (XP) and how much more they need to reach the next level.
As learners collect XP and progress through the levels, their avatars will "grow" and evolve.
Setting up Avatars
Let's dive in and get those avatars set up! To start setting up Avatars, you'll need to enable the feature. Just contact the TinQwise team to have them enable it for you. Decide on the number of levels you want your avatars to have. This will determine how many different versions of the avatar you'll need to design. Let them know how many levels you want to add for the avatars and the default XP for each activity. Then, follow these steps:
Step 1. Go to Control > Settings > Avatars.
Step 2. Add an avatar and fill in the details. Here, you will find
Title: Add a generic title for your avatar. This title is not shown to the learners.
Levels:
Title: Add a title for each level of the avatar. These titles are visible to the learners.
Image: Add an image for each level of your avatar.
XP needed: Set up the XP requirements for each level. You'll need to decide how much XP is needed to reach each level, with the exception of the first level, which should not have an XP requirement. Keep in mind that you can adjust these requirements as needed to match the difficulty of your learning activities.
Background colours: Choose background colours for your avatar. You'll need to select at least three different background colours that learners can choose from when selecting their avatar.
Step 3. Save your changes.
Step 4. Once you are ready to go live with the avatar, click on the pen icon to access the edit options. Check the "published" box and save again to make the avatar visible to learners
Good to know 👀
Tip: Before you start setting up your avatar, create a concept for it. What does it look like at each level? How does it change as it progresses through the levels? Consider using different colors, shapes, and features to distinguish each level from the others.
Keep in mind that you'll need to have at least one published avatar for learners to see the "Avatar" tab in their profile settings.
You decide on the default XP value for each activity when activating the avatar feature (this step will be done by your TinQwise contact). If you want to change the XP value for specific activities, you can manually assign a different number to those activities.
Go to Control > Content > Activities.
Select the activity you want to adjust.
Find the Experience points settings.
Click on the pen icon that appears when hovering.
Change the XP.
Save your changes.
💡 Quick tips for setting up Avatars and XP thresholds:
Define the levels: Determine how many levels you want to include in the avatars and what you want to name each level. You could use gaming terminology like "novice," "intermediate," and "expert," or come up with your own names that align with your organization's goals and objectives.
Design for your learners: Think about who the avatar is for and what they might find appealing. An avatar doesn't need to be overly complex or detailed. A simple design can be more effective and easier for users to recognize and identify with.
Make it visually appealing: Use colors and shapes that are visually appealing and that fit the style and tone of the learning platform.
Set XP dynamic thresholds for each level: Determine the amount of XP that learners need to reach in order to progress to each level. You may want to start with lower thresholds for the first few levels and increase them as learners progress.
Consider difficulties of learning material in learning platform: Think about factors that could affect how quickly learners accumulate XP, such as the difficulty of the learning materials. You may want to adjust the XP for some activities accordingly.
Use the avatar feature to add an element of fun: As learners collect more XP, their avatar can grow, adding an element of gamification to the learning experience.