Get Motivated to Learn with Khan Academy’s New Streaks and Levels Features

By Daniel De Angulo, Senior Product Manager at Khan Academy

Hey y’all! Khan Academy is thrilled to announce two new mechanics designed to make learning a bit more fun and motivating: streaks and levels!

Streaks are designed to promote and celebrate consistency, motivating learners to get at least one skill to proficient or higher each week.

Levels are designed to break apart the daunting task of completing an entire course into smaller, more manageable milestones. At the end of each level, users can celebrate with a “level up” that recognizes their progress towards their goals!

The theory behind both of these mechanics is simple yet powerful: regular, consistent practice fosters learning and retention, and “chunking” divides larger, potentially overwhelming goals into smaller, more achievable tasks. When learners combine regular practice with smaller tasks, Khan Academy can be more encouraging and rewarding than ever.

Why streaks?

Motivation isn’t a fixed trait that students either possess or lack; it can grow or shrink depending on one’s environment and strategies. We wanted our new streaks to embody this philosophy and help users create healthy learning habits that align with learning science in a fun and engaging way.

That being said, we didn’t just want any old streak, we wanted each added week to display meaningful learning. We could have had users renew a streak by watching a video or attempting an exercise. But given the importance of practice and our mastery system, we believe getting one skill to proficient or higher is the ideal indicator that users are on the right track to progressing toward their goals (and we have efficacy research studies to back that claim).

We want users to be able to look back on their streak at the end of a school year with a deep sense of pride and accomplishment for their hard work and consistency!

Why levels?

We can imagine that for some of you, the addition of levels may seem a bit unnecessary. After all, some learners are already racking up hundreds of hours of learning and practicing hundreds of skills per year on Khan Academy, so why make changes to the user experience to “gamify” learning?

Although some users arealready highly motivated to learn on their own, the reality is that many more users would love a way to view and celebrate their progress in a way that helps get the wheels of motivation moving. We believe levels and streaks are a great way for everyone to celebrate their journey on Khan Academy, and these features could be the motivation for many students to make Khan Academy a part of their weekly routine.

How can I start?

To begin, simply visit your current favorite Khan Academy exercise and start leveling up skills! Or, visit our support article to find out more about streaks and how leveling up works.

Hope these features are an exciting addition to your Khan Academy experience, and we will continue to refine and improve them in the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned!

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