Custom Fields for Learning Experiences

Introduction

Enhance your learning platform with custom fields tailored to your organization's needs. This feature allows you to:

• Add personalized data fields to Learning Experiences
• Collect organization-specific information
• Create custom selection lists for improved categorization

As an organization administrator, you can easily set up these fields to classify and organize your Learning Experiences according to your unique requirements.

Benefits:

• Gather relevant supplementary data
• Customize your learning platform to fit your organizational structure
• Improve data organization and searchability

For a visual walkthrough, check out our videos: creating and using custom fields with selection options here, and for utilizing the Long-Text field type in your Learning Experiences here.

Implementation Process

Creating a field set

Field sets enable you to group related fields or attributes, which you can tailor to your organisation. To get started, follow the steps below:

• As an Organisation Admin, log into the platform.
• Navigate to the Admin area.
• Click on Settings.
• Expand Fields.
• Click on the option, labelled Learning Experience.

• Click on Add new field set.
• Add a Field Set Name.
  • This title serves as a label or identifier for the collection of fields grouped under that set.
  • This is a required field with a max character count of 65535 and accepts any characters.
• Add a Field Set ID.
  • This identifier serves as a unique reference for the field set.
  • This is a required field. It populates automatically from the ‘Field Set Name’ field but can be adjusted as needed.
  • The max character count is 65535 and will accept any characters.
• You can add a Field Set Tooltip.
  • This allows you to provide a brief informational message or hint associated with a field set.
  • This is an optional field with a max character count of 100 and will accept any characters.
• You can also add a Field Set Description (Admin Only).
  • This allows you to document the purpose or context of the field set, aiding in the management, organisation, and understanding of the fields grouped within it
  • This is an optional field with a max character count of 65535 and will accept any characters.
• Click Save.

• The order of the field sets can also be adjusted using the up and down arrows.

 

Editing a Field Set

• To edit or update a field set, click on the vertical ellipsis under the Actions column.
• Click Edit.
• The sidebar will open and you can make any desired changes.
  
  • Any changes will affect all Learning Experiences and the front-end experience if Filterable on the Discover page is enabled. 
• Click Save.
• A confirmation will display advising you that changes will affect the front-end experience.
  
  • To save the changes, click Update. 
  • To cancel the changes and go back to the editing screen, click Cancel.

• To cancel the changes while editing, click Cancel.
• A confirmation will display with two options:
  • Cancel and continue editing - Click this to continue editing. 
  • Exit without saving - Click this to exit without saving changes. 

Deleting a Field Set 

• To delete a field set, click on the vertical ellipsis under the Actions column. 
• Click Delete.
• A confirmation displays a warning that deleting the field set will also delete all contained fields.
  • To confirm the deletion, click Delete field set.
  • To cancel deletion, click Cancel.

Adding fields to field set

Once the field set has been created a Success screen will display with an option to add fields immediately. You can click Yes or you can click No and come back to add fields at a later point.

After clicking Yes a sidebar will display asking you to choose which Field type to add:

1. Selections
2. Long Text

Selections Field Type
If you select Selections, the following fields will display:

1. Add a Field Name.
   1. This title serves as a label or identifier for the field.
   2. This is a required field with a max character count of 65535 and accepts any characters.
2. Add a Field ID.
   1. This identifier serves as a unique reference for the field.
   2. This is a required field. It populates automatically from the ‘Field Name’ but can be adjusted as needed.
   3. The max character count is 65535 and will accept any characters.
3. To add your selections, click Add Selection Option for each option.
   1. Options display in the order that they are set at this point.
   2. The order of the selections can be adjusted by using the up and down arrows to the left of each option.
   3. The best practice is to include an option ‘None’ as some Custom Fields may not be relevant to all Learning Experiences
4. Set the Min selections.
   1. The lowest number that can be set is '1'.
   2. The highest number that can be set is ''.
   3. Must be a numerical character
5. Set the Max selections.
   1. The lowest number that can be set is '1'.
   2. The highest number that can be set is ''.
   3. Must be a numerical character
6. Choose how to display the options:
   1. Radio buttons.
      1. Selection options can be displayed as Radio buttons when max selections is set to 1.
      2. When selected, a new setting labelled Default value displays 
   2. Check boxes.
      1. Selection options can be displayed as Checkboxes when max selections is set to more than 1.
   3. Dropdown menu.
      1. Selection options can be displayed as a Dropdown menu when max selections is set to any number.
         1. Notes: This controls how the options display in the back-end only. The filters on the Discover page will always currently display as a dropdown.
         2.  For guidance on how to choose the best display option for you, please see our Choosing the right display option below. 
7. When you have selected your display preference, a new setting displays labelled Default value
   1. This allows you to set a default value to be set on Learning Experiences
   2. If a default value is set, it will apply to all Learning Experiences. 
8. Add a Field Description (Admin Only).
   1. This allows you to document the purpose or context of the field
   2. The max character count is 65535 and will accept any characters.
9. Add a Field Tooltip Description.
   
   1. This allows you to provide a brief informational message or hint associated with a field set.
   2. This is an optional field and will accept any characters.
10. Set Front-end Permissions.
    1. Filterable on Discover page - when enabled, this will display the field on the Discover page as a filter. For more information on this, please see here. 
11. Click Add.

Choosing the right display option:

• Radio buttons:
  • Use when you want users to select only one option from a small set of choices (typically 2-5 options)
  • Best for mutually exclusive choices where seeing all options at once is beneficial
  • Example: Selecting a difficulty level (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced)
• Checkboxes:
  • Use when you want users to select multiple options from a list.
  • Best for independent choices where users can select any number of options,
    including none.
  • Example: Selecting applicable skills (Communication, Leadership, Technical, etc.).
• Dropdown menu:
  • Use when you have a long list of options or when you want to save space on the
    interface.
  • Can be set for single or multiple selections.
  • Best for lists with more than 5-7 options or when the options are not critical to see
    all at once.
  • Example: Selecting a department or multiple departments from a long list.

Consider the following when choosing a display option:

1. Number of options: Few options (use radio buttons or checkboxes), many options(use dropdown).
2. Selection type: Single selection (radio buttons or dropdown), multiple selections
   (checkboxes or multi-select dropdown).
3. User experience: Consider what's most intuitive and easy to use for your specific
   case.
4. Screen space: Dropdown menus save space, while radio buttons and checkboxes
   provide better visibility of all options.

Long Text Field Type

If you select Long-Text from the the following fields will display:

1. Field Name: Enter a unique name for the field.
2. Field ID: This ID is automatically generated from the field name but can be modified if needed. It must be unique and is used for mapping the field.
3. Default Value: (Optional) Set a default value that will automatically populate in the field for learning experiences.
4. Minimum and Maximum Character Lengths: Defines the character limits for the text entries in this field.
5. Field Description (Admin Only): (Optional) Provide a description to document the purpose or context of the field.
6. Field Tooltip Description: (Optional) Add a brief informational message or hint to assist users with the field.
7. Field must be unique for each learning experience: Enable this option if the field text must be unique for each learning experience.
8. Click Add.

Editing a field within a field set

• To edit a specific field, expand the field set and click the vertical ellipsis under the Actions column. 
• Click Edit.
• The sidebar will open and you can make any desired changes.
  • Any changes will affect all Learning Experiences and the front-end experience if Filterable on the Discover page is enabled. 
• Click Save.
• A confirmation will display advising you that changes will affect the front-end experience.
  
  • To save the changes, click Update. 
  • To cancel the changes and go back to the editing screen, click Cancel.

• To cancel the changes while editing, click Cancel.
• A confirmation will display with two options:
  • Cancel and continue editing - Click this to continue editing. 
  • Yes - Click this to exit without saving changes. 

 

Deleting a field within a field set

• To delete a field set, expand the field set and click on the vertical ellipsis under the Actions column. 
• Click Delete.
• A confirmation displays asking if you are sure you wish to delete.
  • To confirm deletion, click Yes.
  • To cancel deletion, click No.
• Once deleted, it will no longer appear on Learning Experiences or display as a filter on the Discover page.

 

Setting Custom Fields on Learning Experiences

Once the field set and fields have been created, create a new Learning Experience or navigate to the settings page of an existing one:

1. Click on Fields.
2. Expand the field set you want to add to the Learning Experience.
   1. Field sets and fields will display in the order that they have been set. You can go back and edit the order as required. 

If field is a Selections field type:

1. Will display as follows: 
   1. Any fields that have been set to display as Radio buttons will display as selectable circular buttons. 
   2. Any fields that have been set to display as Checkboxes will display as selectable square boxes. 
   3. Any fields that have been set to display as a Dropdown menu will display as a dropdown menu where one or more items can be selected depending on the max selections field. 
2. Select the relevant selection options.
3. Click Save.

If field is a Long Text field type:

1. Will display as a text box
   1. If a Default value has been set, it will already be populated in the text box
   2. If no default value has been set, it will be empty
2. Enter the desired text
3. Click Save

Best Practices

When creating a Selections field type it is best practice to include a selection option for None or Not Applicable, for instances where the field is not relevant. 

Using Custom Fields for Learning Experiences in Analytics

To get Learning Experience Fields mapped in Analytics reach out to your account manager or raise a ticket with the support desk with the following information:

• Organisation Name
• List any custom fields that are required to be mapped

FAQ's

Q. How do I get the feature?

A. This will automatically be available to everyone.

Q. Can I opt-in/opt-out?

A. It will display for everyone with no option to switch this off. However, it is not required, so can be left empty. 

Q. Are there any limitations on the number of custom fields or the types of data they can contain?

A. No, there is no limit. 

Q. Is there a limit to the number of selection options we can add to a field?

A. No, there is no limit. 

Q. Can I customise the order in which these custom fields appear on the Learning Experiences?

A. The order of the fields can be adjusted using the up and down arrows. This is the case for both the field sets and the fields themselves. 

Q. Will existing Learning Experiences be affected by the addition of these custom fields?

A. If a default value is set, it will apply to all existing Learning Experiences. The best practice is to add a selection option for 'None' or 'Not applicable' and set it as the default value. 

Q. Can custom fields be edited or removed once they've been created?

A. Both the field sets and the fields themselves can be edited or removed. Confirmation is required as it will affect existing Learning Experiences and filters on the front-end. 

Q. Can these custom fields be used in reporting or analytics?

A. They can be used with Analytics. Reach out to your account manager or raise a ticket with the support desk with the following information:

• Organisation Name
• List any custom fields that are required to be mapped