VET specifications for packaging
and sharing content and courses
Research Report
E-standards for Training
V1.0 June 2013
flexiblelearning.net.au
VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
Acknowledgements
The New Generation Technologies for Learning business activity, on behalf of the National
VET E-learning Strategy, wishes to acknowledge and thank participants from across the
Australian vocational education and training (VET) sector, including the E-standards Expert
Group and the following key contributors:
Owen Oneill
Vijendra Lal
Shelley Towner
David Appleby
Jaci Ganendran
Kristena Gladman
Bronwyn Lapham
With the exception of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, the Department’s logo, any material protected
by a trade mark and where otherwise noted all material presented in this document is provided under a
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/) licence.
New Generation Technologies for Learning
incorporating E-standards for Training
National VET E-learning Strategy
VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
Table of Contents
1 Background ......................................................................................................... 1
1.1 National VET E-learning Strategy ................................................................................. 1
1.2 New Generation Technologies for Learning Business Activity ..................................... 1
2 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1
3 Overview of previous packaging investigations ............................................... 3
3.1 E-standards for Training – IMS Common Cartridge investigation ................................. 3
3.2 Link Affiliates – IMS Common Cartridge project ........................................................... 3
3.3 ASPECT (Adopting Standards and Specifications for Educational Content) – IMS CC
and SCORM ........................................................................................................................ 3
4 Packaging standards investigation.................................................................... 4
4.1 IMS Common Cartridge (IMS CC) ................................................................................. 4
4.1.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 4
4.1.2 Potential applications .......................................................................................................... 4
4.1.3 Barriers to implementation .................................................................................................. 5
4.1.4 LMS Support ....................................................................................................................... 5
4.2 SCORM 2004 ................................................................................................................ 6
4.2.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 6
4.2.2 Potential applications .......................................................................................................... 6
4.2.3 Barriers to implementation .................................................................................................. 6
4.2.4 LMS Support ....................................................................................................................... 6
4.3 Experience/Tin Can API ................................................................................................ 6
4.3.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 6
4.3.2 Potential applications .......................................................................................................... 7
4.3.3 Barriers to implementation .................................................................................................. 8
4.3.4 LMS Support ....................................................................................................................... 8
4.4 IMS Content Packaging ................................................................................................. 8
4.4.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 8
4.4.2 Potential applications .......................................................................................................... 9
4.4.3 Barriers to implementation .................................................................................................. 9
4.4.4 LMS Support ....................................................................................................................... 9
4.5 IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI)............................................................... 9
4.5.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 9
4.5.2 Potential applications .......................................................................................................... 9
4.5.3 Barriers to implementation .................................................................................................. 9
4.5.4 LMS Support ..................................................................................................................... 10
4.6 Learning Content Management Systems packaging support ..................................... 10
5 Implications for national content and Vetadata .............................................. 11
5.1 National content ........................................................................................................... 11
5.1.1 IMS CP and SCORM 2004 advantages ............................................................................ 11
New Generation Technologies for Learning
incorporating E-standards for Training
National VET E-learning Strategy
VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
5.1.2 IMS CP and SCORM 2004 disadvantages ....................................................................... 11
5.1.3 IMS CC advantages .......................................................................................................... 12
5.1.4 IMS CC disadvantages ..................................................................................................... 12
5.2 Vetadata ...................................................................................................................... 12
6 LMS course packaging ..................................................................................... 13
6.1 Moodle ......................................................................................................................... 13
6.2 Blackboard ................................................................................................................... 13
6.3 Other LMS ................................................................................................................... 13
7 Recommendations ............................................................................................ 14
8 Appendix 1: Environmental Scan ..................................................................... 15
8.1 Content and course packaging formats....................................................................... 17
8.2 Tools for content and course packaging ..................................................................... 18
8.3 LMS and LCMS used nationally .................................................................................. 18
8.4 LMS Course Backup.................................................................................................... 18
More Information .................................................................................................. 19
New Generation Technologies for Learning
incorporating E-standards for Training
National VET E-learning Strategy
VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
1 Background
1.1 National VET E-learning Strategy
The National VET1 E-learning Strategy (Strategy) aims to strengthen the Australian
training sector’s use of new learning technologies and leverage opportunities
provided by such projects as the National Broadband Network (NBN) to make major
advances in the achievement of government training objectives.
The Strategy seeks to build the capability of registered training organisations (RTOs),
industry and community stakeholders to create more accessible training options and
facilitate new ways of learning through technology. It also aims to stimulate elearning ventures to support individual participation in training and employment, and
the alignment of workforce skill levels with economic needs.
The Strategy is driven by the vision:
A globally competitive Australian training system underpinned by
world class e-learning infrastructure and capability.
and has the following three goals:
1. Develop and utilise e-learning strategies to maximise the benefits of
the national investment in broadband.
2. Support workforce development in industry through innovative
training solutions.
3. Expand participation and access for individuals through targeted
e-learning approaches.
1.2 New Generation Technologies for Learning Business
Activity
The New Generation Technologies for Learning Business Activity incorporates the
existing E-standards for Training activity and primarily contributes to Goal 1 of the
National VET E-learning Strategy. It has the following objective:
Support the capacity of the VET system to use broadband and emerging
technologies for learning, through research, standards development and advice.
2 Introduction
1
Vocational Education and Training
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E-learning content often needs to be moved from one location to another, either
within organisations or beyond. This process can be difficult and time consuming and
has led to the development of a number of packaging specifications to address
portability of e-learning content.
This report reviews current content packaging and portability practices in the
Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector, while also exploring the
potential applications of a number of technical standards in this space including:





IMS Common Cartridge (IMS CC)
A specification that enables external and dynamic content to be integrated
into a single package along with regular e-learning content
Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM 2004)
A specification for packaging content that can communicate assessment
information with systems (such as Learning Management Systems)
Experience/Tin Can API (Tin Can)
The forthcoming replacement for the SCORM specification (and a major
departure from SCORM) focuses on recording information about learning
activities rather than e-learning content
IMS Content Packaging (IMS CP)
A basic packaging format that forms the basis of the packaging functionality
for SCORM and Common Cartridge can also be used on its own
IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI)
This specification provides an approach for integrating e-learning tools and
functionality together.
The SCORM 1.2 specification is another popular approach to packaging and is used
for the majority of learning objects in the national VET learning object collection.
However compared to more modern standards, it offers limited flexibility, uses
deprecated (superseded) underlying specifications, contains errors in the XML
Schemas it uses, and requires the maintenance of two separate versions of
Vetadata. For these reasons it has not been considered in this report.
An environmental scan (Appendix 1) was undertaken as part of this project, which
investigated common approaches to content and course packaging in the VET sector
nationally.
A number of recommendations regarding the packaging of e-learning content have
been made in this report. These recommendations have been informed by the
availability and functionality of packaging specifications and tools, as well as current
practice in the sector.
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3 Overview of previous packaging investigations
Investigations into packaging of e-learning content have taken place in the past. This
report leverages off the findings of the following projects:
3.1 E-standards for Training – IMS Common Cartridge
investigation
In 2009, the Australian Flexible Learning Framework’s E-standards for Training
project undertook a brief trial of IMS CC in collaboration with Kangan Institute. This
trial was generally favourable towards the potential for IMS CC to be of benefit in the
sector, but noted a lack of tool support as the standard was at that time still quite
new.
3.2 Link Affiliates – IMS Common Cartridge project
In 2010, Link Affiliates (a group of e-learning consultants previously engaged by the
Australian Government) undertook an investigation involving the IMS CC
specification. This project took some Australian Schools sector content (developed
through The Learning Federation, an initiative managed by Curriculum Corporation–
the predecessor to Education Services Australia) and customised it to introduce more
interactive “Web 2.0” style functionality. This was guided by the accompanying
lesson plan developed for the e-learning content and was done in collaboration with
an instructional designer. It resulted in a blog, discussion board, wiki and interactive
map being integrated with the content. It was then successfully uploaded to Moodle
and tested.
This trial was generally successful in adapting the content with new interactive
functionality, however as with the 2009 project, the lack of tool support for developing
IMS CC content was noted as a limitation to adoption.
3.3 ASPECT (Adopting Standards and Specifications for
Educational Content) – IMS CC and SCORM
The ASPECT project2 was a large EU funded project that considered content
standards as well as content discovery standards. The project involved teachers and
technical staff from a number of European countries. It resulted in a set of
recommendations for different stakeholders in the e-learning community.3 The project
investigated both IMS CC and SCORM, but with a greater emphasis on IMS CC. A
small trial in Europe conducted as part of the ASPECT project found SCORM more
suited to self-paced learning, while IMS CC is more appropriate to blended learning.
2
3
http://aspect-project.org/
http://aspect-project.org/node/183
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4 Packaging standards investigation
This section explores the following specifications relating to packaging e-learning
content and linking to it and tracking results:





IMS Common Cartridge (IMS CC)
SCORM 2004 (Sharable Content Object Reference Model)
Experience/Tin Can API (Tin Can)
IMS Content Packaging (IMS CP)
IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI)
An overview of each standard is provided, along with information about potential
applications and barriers, and current LMS support.
4.1 IMS Common Cartridge (IMS CC)
4.1.1 Overview
IMS Common Cartridge (IMS CC) is a specification for creating, sharing and
deploying e-learning content. The IMS CC specification itself actually comprises a
number of existing specifications including




IMS Content Packaging (IMS CP)4,
IMS Question and Test Interoperability (IMS QTI)5,
IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI)6 and
IEEE Learning Object Metadata (IEEE LOM)7.
It enables interactive e-learning content to be created and deployed across multiple
platforms in a consistent way.
At its most basic, a cartridge is functionally similar to a basic SCORM object (such as
a Toolbox learning object) with only relatively trivial differences in the XML code.
However, IMS CC is also designed to enable the development of more complex,
modular and distributed e-learning content that is not possible with SCORM. For
example, cartridges can include content hosted on the web as well as being able to
initiate dynamic content such as LMS discussion forums. A number of large
publishers were involved in the development of the specification and it has been
adopted by major LMS vendors including Moodle and Blackboard.
4.1.2 Potential applications
IMS CC is an evolution of existing IMS standards, and as such uses the IMS CP
specification for packaging cartridges, which is already commonly used in the VET
sector. IMS CC could be used for the following purposes in the VET sector:
4
http://www.imsglobal.org/content/packaging/
http://www.imsglobal.org/question/
6 http://www.imsglobal.org/lat.html
7 http://ltsc.ieee.org/wg12/20020612-Final-LOM-Draft.html
5
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


Learning objects: creating traditional learning objects and learning objects that
contain interactive elements and/or external content are both possible with
IMS CC
E-learning courses: IMS CC can be used to create LMS course templates, and
to back up or move LMS courses (see Section 6 for further discussion)
Utilising publisher and other third party content with e-learning content.
4.1.3 Barriers to implementation
The major barrier to implementation of the IMS CC specification continues to be tool
support. This falls into two categories: tools for creating IMS CC compliant content,
and LMS Support
4.1.3.1 Tools for creating IMS CC Compliant content
When reviewed in 2009 and 2010, the lack of tool support was seen as a barrier to
uptake, and tool support for creating IMS CC packages remains limited in 2013.
Some tools do exist for creating IMS CC packages including:
1. eXe
eXe is a simple and reasonably popular tool that was developed in New Zealand
for creating and packaging e-learning content. It has had some uptake in
Australia. It was also used in the 2010 trial of IMS CC undertaken by Link
Affiliates. As the tool has been further developed since then, it is worth revisiting it
to see if it meets content creator requirements in the VET sector.
2. Icodeon
Icodeon8 is a software company that has developed a Common Cartridge
platform, which is a web-based application for creating e-learning content. “The
platform provides a set of “web services” that enable developers to build online
education tools”9. This application was favourably used with teachers in the
European ASPECT project; however it is not open source.
3. AContent
The AContent tool10 was developed by the ATutor initiative in Canada. It was
developed as a web-based tool, and was designed to be used in conjunction with
the ATutor LMS.
It should also be fairly straightforward to modify VET Reload to enable the
creation/modification of simple IMS CC packages (which are functionally equivalent
to a standard IMS Content Package).
4.1.4 LMS Support
Both Blackboard and Moodle have native support for importing IMS CC packages as
either learning objects or e-learning courses. Both also enable existing courses to be
backed up using the IMS CC format (see Section 6 for more information). Janison
8
http://www.icodeon.com/
http://ccplatform.blogspot.com.au/2009/04/frequently-asked-questions.html
10
http://atutor.ca/acontent/
9
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LMS (currently used in Queensland) and Fronter LMS (soon to be used in Tasmania)
can utilise SCORM or AICC11 format packages, however neither LMS currently
supports IMS CC.
4.2 SCORM 2004
4.2.1 Overview
SCORM 2004 is the current iteration of the popular SCORM packaging standard.
SCORM 2004 itself has had 2 “editions” published, each containing iterative
improvements. The specification has never reached the same level of acceptance as
SCORM 1.2 despite improvements over the original (primarily in the areas of
sequencing and navigation of content).
4.2.2 Potential applications
The SCORM 2004 specification has very similar applications to the original SCORM
1.2 specification: it enables packages to exchange assessment information with
LMSs. It provides improved functionality compared to SCORM 1.2, an updated test
suite and utilises more modern XML Schema files, which are consistent with VET Estandards recommendations.
4.2.3 Barriers to implementation
As noted, SCORM 2004 has never reached the level of acceptance that SCORM 1.2
has. The main barrier to adoption would be the imminent replacement of SCORM
2004 with the Experience/Tin Can API. However, judging by the length of time it has
taken the e-learning community to move to SCORM 2004 from SCORM 1.2,
Experience/Tin Can API may not replace SCORM quickly.
4.2.4 LMS Support
Blackboard and Moodle have mature support for SCORM 2004. Fronter and Janison
both support SCORM also, but there is less detailed information about the level of
support offered by these LMSs (and indeed the version of SCORM that is supported).
Testing with sample SCORM 2004 learning objects would be recommended to
ensure interoperability before adoption by Fronter and Janison users.
4.3 Experience/Tin Can API
4.3.1 Overview
The Experience API is the official name given by Advanced Distributed Learning
(ADL)12 for a replacement for the user tracking component of the SCORM
specification, which has really morphed into experience tracking. During
development, it was dubbed the Tin Can API by Rustici Software who were
11
AICC is a packaging specification that originated in the aviation industry and is not used
widely in VET
12 http://www.adlnet.gov/tla/experience-api
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commissioned to research and develop the specification and now both names are
used interchangeably (a source of some confusion in the community). The
Experience/Tin Can API is a significant departure from the previous versions of
SCORM in that it moves the focus of the specification away from content and
towards recording information about activities completed by learners. Examples of
very simple Tin Can statements include13:


Ben started/attempted Course 1
Mary completed/passed Activity 3 with a score of 70%
A key aim of the new standard is to track learning activity including so-called “nonlinear” experiences such as social media interactions - activities that happen outside
the standard online learning environment/LMS. The standards is intended to make it
possible to collect data about the wide range of experiences a person has (online
and offline in a consistent format, from many technologies.
Version 1.0.0 of the Experience API was released in April 2013 and a formatted
“snapshot” of the authoritative specification is available for download. Work on the
Experience API specification resumed in May with the working group planning to
refine the specification in the next year based on how people use the API.
There has been significant interest in this specification, and there have been a
number of vendors claiming to be early adopters (including for example Articulate
Online14, which claims to be a Tin Can API supported LMS).
4.3.2 Potential applications
The specification is designed to identify and record learning experiences, which in
vocational education could support processes for identifying evidence of
competency. Some potential uses in the VET sector include:
1. eAssessment processes
The specification will support eAssessment processes by enabling the
completion of learning activities to be recorded. If the specification is widely
implemented in tools and platforms (such as LMS), it is reasonable to expect
Tin Can to become a convenient method of recording eAssessment events.
2. Recognition of prior learning
To support Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) applications, learners could
use systems that utilised the specification to identify learning experiences and
competencies. This would require Tin Can to be implemented in RPL tools
and systems.
3. ePortfolios
Tin Can could be used by e-portfolio systems to standardise the way learners
identify their skills and evidence of competency. This would drive greater
interoperability between e-portfolio systems, and between e-portfolio systems
and other systems such as SMS (student management systems).
13
For a full overview of the specification and statements see:
http://tincanapi.wikispaces.com/Tin+Can+API+Specification and http://www.adlnet.gov/tla/experience-api
14 http://www.articulate.com/products/articulate-online.php
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Potential applications for the VET sector are likely to become more apparent over the
next 1-2 years as more people experiment and implement the specification.
4.3.3 Barriers to implementation
Traditionally there has been limited demand for tracking of learners and learning
activities in Australian VET as most e-learning is delivered in a blended learning
environment. This could limit the relevance for the specification in Australian VET;
however the growing interest in eAssessment can be expected to change this. The
project reference group overseeing this report also indicated that there was an
increasing need to track learners and results in jurisdictions for compliance purposes.
From a developer point of view, the main barrier to implementation currently is that it
is a new standard that appears to be subject to change in the near future and existing
implementations may be somewhat incomplete when the next version of the
specification is released.
From a user point of view, despite the current level of interest in the specification,
there is as yet no widespread adoption in the marketplace; however this seems to be
changing rapidly.
4.3.4 LMS Support
As of January 2013 Tin Can support for the LMSs used by public RTOs in Australia is
as follows:




There is currently no native support in Moodle for Tin Can. Work on Tin Can
at Moodle started in September 2012 and is scheduled as a high priority.
Blackboard supports the use of the Rustici SCORM engine, and the Rustici
SCORM engine now supports Tin Can. Blackboard has announced
forthcoming support, although it is unclear when this new functionality will be
released
Janison does not currently have active development underway for Tin Can,
but is maintaining a watching brief on the specification and is responsive to
customer requests for new functionality.
Fronter has no current Tin Can functionality and has not publicly announced
any Tin Can development plans.
4.4 IMS Content Packaging
4.4.1 Overview
The IMS Content Packaging (IMS CP) specification is a widely used content
packaging specification that provides the packaging functionality for other
specifications including SCORM and IMS CC. The specification produces a Zip file,
which contains a Manifest file, as well as the packaged e-learning content. The
Manifest file is an XML document that describes the contents of the package. Tools
such as LMSs read this XML information and use the information to present the
content from the package to the user.
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4.4.2 Potential applications
The specification can be used only for packaging e-learning content, but is also able
to be integrated with other IMS specifications.
4.4.3 Barriers to implementation
IMS CP has very wide support as it has been around for a long time and forms the
basis for the packaging functionality for SCORM and IMS CC. Some tools may only
support certain types of content packages however, such as SCORM packages.
4.4.4 LMS Support
Moodle, Blackboard and Fronter all support IMS CP; however it would be prudent to
test Fronter with some sample IMS CP content to confirm this. Janison supports
SCORM content, and IMS CP packages can also be imported.
4.5 IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI)
4.5.1 Overview
The IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI) specification was developed to
provide a standardised interface between e-learning tool “consumers” and e-learning
tool “providers”. Although not necessarily the case, in practice, a tool consumer is
generally a Learning Management System (LMS) such as Moodle or Blackboard,
while a tool provider is a third party piece of software such as Wimba or Mahara. The
LTI specification does however support broader definitions of consumers and
providers that could for example include a student portal (consumer) and dynamic
externally hosted e-learning functionality (provider).
4.5.2 Potential applications
The primary application for IMS LTI is integrating different e-learning applications and
functionality together. In practice, this generally means integrating applications (Elgg,
Wimba, blogs, etc.) into systems such as LMSs (Moodle, Blackboard, etc.). For
Moodle users it has the potential to enable disparate e-learning content and courses
to be integrated, as Moodle can be configured to be either a tool provider or tool
consumer (or both).
Prior to the introduction of IMS LTI, software vendors providing third party
functionality to LMS users would need to use (and perhaps develop) different
Application Programming Interfaces (API) for different LMS platforms and even
different versions of the same LMS. This was complex and expensive for vendors
and also meant that functionality from third party applications would be less stable.
IMS LTI provides a method of standardisation for utilising different tools in a learning
environment.
4.5.3 Barriers to implementation
As with any standard, support from software vendors is essential. In the case of LTI
specifically, both the e-learning service consumer (usually an LMS) and the eNational VET E-learning Strategy
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learning service provider (e.g. a third party tool being integrated with the LMS) need
to support the LTI specification for it to be effective.
LMS administrators and managers at both a technical and operational level need to
be aware of the potential benefits of an integration specification such as LTI could
bring, which may present a barrier in some cases.
4.5.4 LMS Support
Moodle
As discussed above, Moodle has a core activity plugin called “External tool” that is an
LTI consumer. Moodle also has a plugin, which enables Moodle to be a tool
provider.15
Blackboard
Blackboard has LTI consumer functionality in all versions since 9.116
Neither Janison nor Fronter support LTI.
4.6 Learning Content Management Systems packaging
support
The survey conducted as part of this project identified an interest from jurisdictions
for utilising Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) for packaging content.
However, often LCMSs operate similarly to Digital Asset Management Systems,
considering the items being managed as “black boxes”. While this may be
appropriate for more simple digital objects such as audio, video or text files, elearning content packages are complex objects often containing metadata that could
be utilised for managing and using the object.
Equella is the most commonly used LCMS in use nationally. This system is able to
read metadata from packaged e-learning content (e.g. SCORM or IMS CP
packages), but it does not have the capability to write metadata back into the
package. This means that any metadata that is captured or changed by the LCMS is
not recorded in the package. The survey results also indicate that the other LCMS in
use in the sector is Alfresco; further testing may need to be undertaken to determine
Alfresco’s capabilities in this area.
15
16
http://docs.moodle.org/22/en/LTI_Provider
http://www.imsglobal.org/cc/statuschart.cfm
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5 Implications for national content and Vetadata
Any change to the current approach of developing national content using SCORM
1.2 would require changes in current practice from both a development perspective
and a user perspective. It is therefore vital to carefully consider the sector’s
operational requirements before deciding on any potential change.
5.1 National content
IMS LTI could facilitate access to content across systems, but is not a specification
for packaging content as such. The Tin Can specification is for recording information
about learning activities, so its impact on the development of e-learning content is
minimal. As such, the primary options for developing learning objects in a similar way
to current practice would be to recommend the use of one or more of the following
specifications IMS CP, SCORM 2004 or IMS CC.
Adopting one or more of these specifications would require a decision on whether to
keep legacy content as SCORM 1.2 or convert existing content to the new
specification. Another approach would be to only change content when it was
updated, or if it had a certain level of popularity. The conversion could be automated
with some scripting, which would greatly reduce time and costs; however some
manual intervention should be expected. There is also an open source tool for
converting content from SCORM to IMS CC.
All of the learning objects in the national collection are SCORM 1.2 compliant.
However, the vast majority of these objects do not utilise any SCORM reporting or
tracking functionality. Within this context, this report considers the advantages and
disadvantages of replacing SCORM 1.2 with the following:


A combination of IMS CP for simple packages (the majority of learning
objects currently in use) and SCORM 2004 for packages containing tracking
and reporting functionality
IMS CC for all packages
5.1.1 IMS CP and SCORM 2004 advantages
Using IMS CP would be a relatively straightforward change from current SCORM 1.2
approach and would be used for the majority of learning objects in the national
collection. It is supported by Reload editor, and eXe among other commonly used elearning content development and packaging tools. The specification is supported in
Moodle and Blackboard, has been used by Janison users in Queensland, and is
supported by Fronter. Using SCORM 2004 only for learning objects that actually
contain tracking and reporting functionality would provide clarity to users who are
looking for such functionality.
5.1.2 IMS CP and SCORM 2004 disadvantages
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IMS CP provides no additional functionality on its own. Although well supported by
tools, SCORM 2004 is less widely implemented than SCORM 1.2 and will itself soon
be out of date with the release of the Tin Can/Experience API in 2013.
Further testing of IMS CP and SCORM 2004 content packages in Fronter and
Janison would be desirable before any final decision on replacing SCORM 1.2 was
made.
5.1.3 IMS CC advantages
If national content were to be developed using IMS CC format packages instead of
SCORM 1.2, it would enable content developers to develop more interactive content
elements to be integrated into learning objects as required.
5.1.4 IMS CC disadvantages
Before IMS CC could be considered for developing national e-learning content,
sample content would need to be tested with Janison LMS and Fronter LMS;
however it is unlikely that either will support the specification in the short term. Tool
support for creating IMS CC cartridges also remains limited. Although it’s possible to
implement tracking, reporting and eAssessment functionality using IMS CC, it is not
as widely implemented or recognised an approach as SCORM.
5.2 Vetadata
Both the IMS CP/SCORM 2004 and IMS CC options would mean Vetadata would no
longer need to publish separate SCORM and non-SCORM versions of the Vetadata
XML Schema, which would simplify maintenance of that specification. IMS CC would
require a small number of mandatory elements, and also precludes a number of
metadata elements currently used, however this would not have a major impact in
practice.
With the closure of the Learning Object Repository Network (LORN), the number of
mandatory metadata elements required for national content requires revision, and
could be reduced. IMS CP and SCORM 2004 specify no mandatory metadata
elements.
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
6 LMS course packaging
There has been a growing interest in the VET sector in being able to relocate and or
reuse an entire LMS course. This is a process that is generally difficult and time
consuming. Although in the past course backup/restore has been available in some
LMS, the native formats were usually proprietary thereby limiting their use.
However, besides their own non-standard course back up formats, both Moodle and
Blackboard now allow the export and import of entire courses using the IMS
Common Cartridge format.
6.1 Moodle
Moodle allows the export and import of courses in IMS CC format. In the backup
section (Course Administration) there is a check-box for selecting IMS CC format.
Backup can then be completed as normal. An IMS CC format course can be
imported via the Restore function
6.2 Blackboard
Blackboard allows the export of a course in IMS CC format via two options17: the
Administrator Panel (available only to Administrators), and from the course
Control Panel.
6.3 Other LMS
At this stage, Janison and Fronter do not allow course backups using an open
specification such as IMS CC. Sakai supports IMS CC.
17
http://library.blackboard.com/ref/df5b20ed-ce8d-4428-a595a0091b23dda3/Content/_admin_app_course/admin_app_course_common_cartridge.htm
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
7 Recommendations
1: Consolidate recommended technical specifications for packaging content.
Recommended actions:
 Test sample IMS CP and SCORM 2004 learning objects in Blackboard,
Moodle, Fronter, Janison and Sakai. Use the results of this testing to refine
the following actions as required:
- Leave legacy content as SCORM 1.2 but develop no new content
using the SCORM 1.2 specification beyond 2013
- New or redeveloped learning objects that have no SCORM
functionality (currently most learning objects in practice) should be
packaged using IMS CP 1.1.4
- New or redeveloped learning objects that plan to utilise SCORM
functionality (such as writing assessment results back to an LMS
grade book, etc.), use SCORM 2004.
- Review and rationalise the Vetadata specification to conform with
IEEE LOM metadata only (compatible with all relevant packaging
specifications except SCORM 1.2).
2: Trial the Tin Can/Experience API using VET eAssessment use-cases
Recommended actions
 The EEG collates a set of use-cases based on common eAssessment
requirements nationally with input from the jurisdictions and FLAG as
appropriate. The cases should build on the VET eAssessment Guidelines
 Trials are funded with RTOs to review the Tin Can/Experience API against
the identified use cases
 The trials determine tool support and potential implementation barriers as well
as the suitability of the standard to address the identified use cases
 This trial should also build on the experiences of the Holmesglen emerging
technology trial investigating Tin Can/Experience.
3: Fund trials using IMS CC for course backup and reuse
Recommended actions
 Trials should test the use of IMS CC for creating course templates, backing
up, and reusing courses.
 The trial process should utilise as many combinations of Jurisdictions and
LMS instances as is feasible
 Trial participants should provide recommendations on the suitability of IMS
CC for backup and reuse of LMS courses
4: Update recommendations on suitable tools for packaging VET e-learning
content and courses
Recommended actions
 Fund an emerging technology trial to test different packaging tools with real
VET content and practitioners and report back on findings. The trial should
include Reload, eXe and ATutor as a minimum.
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New Generation Technologies for Learning
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
8 Appendix 1: Environmental Scan
This environmental scan was gathered from three primary sources;



an online survey undertaken as part of this project,
a national LMS consultation undertaken by Queensland in 2012, and
consultations with an advisory group comprising members of the E-standards
Expert Group.
The online survey was advertised in the Strategy’s national email newsletter in late
January 2013, and by 14 February 2013, a total of 43 respondents had completed
the survey nationally. The breakdown of respondents is contained in Figure 1. Other
than the Northern Territory (zero participants), there was a good spread of
respondents across jurisdictions.
Figure 1: NSW = 13, VIC = 9, QLD = 10, WA = 3, SA = 2, ACT = 3, TAS = 3, NT = 0
Table 1 provides an overview of the LMS, LCMS, e-learning tools and specifications
identified by jurisdiction respondents. Overall, the number of respondents was strong
and provided enough detail to reliably inform this project. However, for individual
jurisdictions, the number of responses for individual tools and specifications are
indicative only due to relatively low response rates for smaller jurisdictions.
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
Table 1: Popular LMS, LCMS, Content Tools and Content Specifications
Jurisdiction LMS
LCMS
Tools*
Specifications*
NSW
Moodle**
Equella
eXe, ARED^, VET
Reload
SCORM 1.2, IMS
CP, SCORM 2004
VIC
Moodle
Equella
VET Reload,
ARED^, Reload
SCORM 1.2, IMS
CP
QLD
Janison
Equella
VET Reload,
Articulate, ARED^
IMS CP, SCORM
1.2, IMS CC
WA
Moodle,
Blackboard
Equella
Reload,
Captivate,
Camtasia
SCORM 1.2,
SCORM 2004
SA
Moodle
Alfresco***
VET Reload
SCORM 1.2
ACT
Moodle
Equella
Moodle, Articulate
IMS CP, SCORM
1.2
TAS
Fronter
Equella
VET Reload,
Reload
SCORM 1.2, IMS
CP
NT
*This column is restricted to the top three options mentioned in the survey results
**One institute in NSW uses Sakai
*** Alfresco in SA should be implemented by April 2013
^ ARED is no longer available or supported as its Flash output is not supported by the VET E-standards
and the tool is not stable
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
8.1 Content and course packaging formats
Approximately two thirds of respondents specified that some kind of content
packaging format is commonly used in their jurisdiction. SCORM 1.2 is the most
popular, followed by IMS Content Packaging.
Figure 2: IMS CP = 16, SCORM 1.2 = 24, SCORM 2004 = 4, IMS CC = 2
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
8.2 Tools for content and course packaging
Although VET Reload was the single most popular tool used for packaging, the
results indicate a great variety of tools in use with eXe, ARED and Articulate being
popular choices. Articulate was the most popular tool identified by respondents using
the “Other” category.
Table 2: Reload = 11.8%, VET Reload = 38.2%, eXe = 20.6%, ARED = 29.4%, Other = 55.9%
8.3 LMS and LCMS used nationally
The most popular LMS in use are Moodle and Blackboard, with Fronter being used in
Tasmania, Janison in Queensland and an instance of Sakai used in NSW.
8.4 LMS Course Backup
Most respondents indicated regular course backups are undertaken. Although course
administrators are usually responsible for this task, there is a significant minority of
cases where teachers/trainers also undertake course backups. Although some
respondents were unsure of the format used for backing up courses, the majority of
respondents indicated that their jurisdiction/organisation used the default format used
by the LMS. There is therefore a good opportunity to trial the use of IMS Common
Cartridge for course backups in both Moodle and Blackboard. If this format has been
implemented consistently by these two LMSs, it would enable a standardised and
interoperable backup format, which would facilitate course reuse and portability.
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New Generation Technologies for Learning
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VET specifications for packaging and sharing content and courses
More Information
National VET E-learning Strategy
Email: flag_enquiries@natese.gov.au
Website: flexiblelearning.net.au
New Generation Technologies for Learning
incorporating E-standards for Training
Email: e-standards@flexiblelearning.net.au
Website: e-standards.flexiblelearning.net.au
National VET E-learning Strategy
New Generation Technologies for Learning
incorporating E-standards for Training
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