Overview of the SCORM

Claude Ostyn
Copyright © 2004, 2006 Ostyn Consulting. All rights reserved.

What SCORM means

SCORM is an acronym for Shareable Content Object Reference Model.
The SCORM specifies a framework for content that meets the following requirements for e-learning content:

• Durability - Content should last long enough to amortize its cost, and be usable as long as it is relevant.
• Portability - It should be possible to move the content easily from one delivery environment to another. The same content should work without modification in different delivery environments, as long as the delivery environment contains a web browser.
• Reusability - It should be possible to build the content in small, reusable modules that can be reused in different ways. Different communities of practice should be able to share reusable content.
• Interoperability - The same content should work the same way as it is deployed in different environments, regardless of the vendor or developer of the delivery environment.
• Accessibility - It must be possible to find the content in a repository. This requires that some standard cataloguing data be associated with the content.

The SCORM also defines minimum conformance requirements for systems that can deliver such content to a learner.

The SCORM consists of several "books", each of which specifies some technical aspects of shareable content. Some software is provided along with the books to verify conformance and to allow demonstrations of some of the SCORM functionality.

What the SCORM specifies

Aggregations of content objects for portability

The SCORM specifies how reusable web-based content objects can be aggregated into a portable package that includes a manifest to form a larger self-contained content object.

A SCORM manifest provides a detailed description of the content of the SCORM package. The manifest also includes descriptive metadata. It is conceptually similar to the shipping manifest used when one ships physical goods in one or more boxes.

A SCORM package can exist as a persistent package, which is never modified after publication, or it can be assembled and customized on the fly by an automated system for a particular individual. The SCORM does not specify the process by which a package is aggregated, but it specifies the result of such a process.

Launching and tracking of content objects in a package

A runtime environment must be used to launch the individual content objects in a SCORM conformant package. The runtime environment is typically provided by a LMS, a performance support system, or a competency management system.

The runtime environment is completely independent of the content. However, some parts of it must be constructed in a particular way so that some of the content objects will be able to exchange data with the runtime environment. The content objects that can do this kind of data exchange with a SCORM conformant runtime environment are called Shareable Content Objects (SCOs).

The SCORM specifies in detail how a SCO must behave within the runtime environment: The SCO must establish a communication session with the runtime environment, and there is a standard set of data elements that the SCO can use during the communication session. This includes tracking data that allows the SCO to report success and progress, as well as other information about the status of content objectives, results of interactions, and so on.

How to prescribe an activity structure for the content package

The SCORM defines two kinds of package.

The most common kind of package is intended for delivery to a learner. In this kind of package, the manifest describes how the content objects are organized for delivery. This takes the form of a tree of activities and sub-activities that use the content objects. This is the kind of package this book will focus on.

Another kind of SCORM package does not include any organization information. It is used to move amorphous collections of content objects from one system to another, or to archive a collection of content objects. This book does not describe this kind of package.

How to prescribe adaptive sequencing behaviors for activities

By default, the activity tree has no sequencing information associated with it. In that case, a runtime environment must show all the activities and let the learner choose what to do.

However, one may add sequencing rules to the activity tree to define guided flows through the content, adaptive sequencing and other navigation options. The SCORM specifies how to add and implement those rules. It also specifies how the tracking data reported by content objects when they are used can affect adaptive sequencing.

What the SCORM does not specify

How to design learning content

The SCORM is neutral when it comes to pedagogy. Many of the readily available SCORM examples have been using very traditional programmed instruction models. This is due more to a failure of imagination than to intrinsic constraints or prescriptions of the SCORM.

Look and feel

The SCORM does not specify what content should look like, what a runtime environment looks like, and in particular what the user interface for navigation between SCOs looks like.

What a LMS does with tracking data

The SCORM does not specify how a LMS uses and reports tracking data collected while running SCORM content.

Granularity of SCOs and other content objects

The SCORM does not specify a particular granularity, size or duration for SCOs and other content objects. One SCO can be arbitrarily large and take a day to get through, while another SCO could be a single item in a test.

Some communities of practice require a certain level of granularity. Others allow total flexibility. For example, a policy might specify that each SCO should correspond to an enabling content objective in a particular training model. However, the SCORM makes no such assumption. Interoperability with content from different sources may be compromised if the policies are too rigid.

That a web server is required

The SCORM does not specify that a web server is required. It only specifies that the runtime environment must be able to display the SCOs in a web browser. The SCO may actually come from a remote server, from a local server or from the local file system. For example, it is possible to deliver the same SCORM conformant content on a CD-ROM, if an appropriate player is available, or through a web based learning management system.

You do not have to learn all of SCORM to use SCORM

A SCORM content developer should not be concerned about how the runtime environment is built. The LMS vendor or developer will provide the runtime environment. The SCORM was designed to put most of the complexity burden on the runtime environment. This means that there are few requirements on the content. The assumption is that there will be many more pieces of content than there will be runtime environments. Therefore it makes sense to make the content lightweight and delegate the heavy lifting to the shared environments.

For example, the runtime environment must typically exchange data with the LMS across the network or the Internet, which requires complicated protocols, careful timing, and advanced error management. On the other hand, all a SCO has to do is make simple JavaScript calls to the runtime environment to get or send data.

Mapping to real world performance objectives or learning outcomes

SCORM 2004 enables tracking of status for content objectives, using globally unique identifiers. A LMS may use this data according to policies that are outside the scope of the SCORM. For example, this data could be used for various learning management purposes, possibly in connection with reusable competency definitions. The IMS RDCEO (Reusable Definition of Competency or Educational Objective) specification describes how to create reusable competency definitions.

Basically, a reusable competency definition describes the part of competency data that can be reused for more than one learner and more than one context. This can just be a summary title, for example, "knows how to tie a shoelace", or it may be a very detailed specification for a skill, knowledge or ability, or for a learning objective that corresponds to a skill or specific knowledge. Whatever the content of a reusable definition is, its unique identifier can be used to reference it. For example, metadata for a learning object could include the identifier of a reusable competency definition that describes the intended learning outcome for the learning object.

The identifiers for objectives specified in SCORM compliant content could match the identifiers of such competency definitions. This would in turn allow the LMS to record the success of a particular learner in mastering the objective described by a particular reusable competency definition. This information could then be used again later if the learner attempts another learning activity that involves the same objective, to provide a personalized learning experience.

SCORM 2004 sequencing can also use the objective status information to control sequencing rules. This means that a LMS could preset the status information for objectives referenced in SCORM sequencing rules, based on prior experience of the learner, to personalize the sequencing. For example, a learner might be allowed to skip topics already mastered in a completely different course. Note that the setting and use of objective status information is not currently defined in the SCORM beyond the scope of what happens during the delivery of SCORM packages. Therefore whether and how it is implemented will vary from LMS to LMS. This is however an exciting potential opportunity that leverages the standard features of the SCORM.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 License.