xAPI & SCORM Differences
What is Tin Can API (xAPI)?
Tin Can API or xAPI is the next generation of SCORM. xAPI adopted all key features of SCORM, plus some new features. For example, it has the capability to view in-depth assessment results, record any activities, and track diverse eLearning scenarios. Besides, unlike SCORM, xAPI doesn’t rely on any web browser, LMS, and Internet connection to work. Learners, therefore, have easy access to all kinds of materials anywhere and learn anytime they want.
The “x” in xAPI is short for “experience”. This implies that xAPI’s advantages are far beyond what SCORM brings to you. Meanwhile, API stands for Application Programming Interface, a common method for software systems to interact and share data. At the simplest level, an xAPI activity statement tracks experiences in the “I did this” format (actor, verb, object). For example, “Jones did those tasks” or “Andy joined the party”. This format is also the core of any xAPI statement, making it easy to track any experience in any context.
If SCORM contents need an LMS to play, an LRS (Learning Record Store) is at the core of any xAPI ecosystem. The LRS will receive, store, and return data about learning experiences and performance. What’s more, you can also use your LRS to distribute data to other systems which support xAPI like another LRS, an LMS or a third-party reporting system. This feature is actually one of the most noticeable things which make xAPI become more advantageous than SCORM.
The current version of xAPI is 1.0.3, released early in October 2016.
3. What’s the Difference between SCORM and xAPI?
Some people often think about SCORM like a landline and xAPI like a smartphone. Using a landline, you only make phone calls. Meanwhile, a smartphone can transform the way you communicate with others and change your life. Besides calling, you can send messages, take photos, access the Internet, install new applications, share files, customize your phone, and so much more. xAPI now has started displacing SCORM, just as smartphones eventually overtook landlines. In other words, SCORM is just more basic compared to xAPI.
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Figure: Comparison between SCORM and xAPI (Source: Experience API)
In the eLearning market trends and forecast 2017 – 2011 report, Docebo stressed that “xAPI is another emerging feature demanded of authoring tools. While it still represents a niche product in terms of adoption, it is expected to become a game-changer in the upcoming years”.
Despite all distinctions above, the outcomes delivered by SCORM and xAPI are similar. That is, whichever specification you choose, your eLearning contents won’t differ too much. Both allow learners to launch courses, complete them, answer quizzes, and pass tests.
4. SCORM and xAPI: Which One You Should Choose
In reality, it depends on your needs.
SCORM is enough if you want to:
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5 年After reading this awesome difference between, your reader would love to add some more information about the Learning Record Store, like its advantages, Read 7 Key Benefits of Learning Record Store here:?https://www.nextsoftwaresolutions.com/7-key-benefits-of-learning-record-store-lrs/