The Experience API (xAPI) introduces several design implications for mobile learning that involve user experience (UX) design, interface design, service and system design, organizational design, reporting and analytics design, and instructional design. You’ll hear about the different use cases focusing on commonly anticipated business requirements that will ultimately help determine and prioritize your design objectives. This stage event will be both informative and interactive and will involve audience participation to identify and discuss the potential types of cognitive and performance processes in designing a learning experience using the xAPI.

1. Design Implications of the xAPI (“Tin Can API”)
mLearnCon, San Jose, CA, June 19, 2013
Mr. Jason Haag, Research Analyst, Mobile Learning Lead
The Tolliver Group, Inc. SETA Support for ADL

2. 2
‣ ADL Initiative was established in 1999 by
Presidential Executive Order 13111. The first two
ADL Co-Labs opened in Alexandria, VA and Orlando,
FL that same year.
Advanced Distributed Learning
Background and Vision

3. 3
“Provide access to the highest quality
education and training, tailored to
individual needs, delivered cost effectively,
anywhere and anytime.”
- ADL Vision

4. 4
ADL Global Reach
Canada ADL Partnership Lab
Kingston, ON, Canada
Norway ADL
Partnership Lab
Oslo, Norway
United Kingdom
ADL Partnership Lab
Buckinghamshire,
United Kingdom
Korea ADL
Partnership Lab
Seoul, Korea
Romania ADL
Partnership Lab
Bucharest, Romania
Latin America and Caribbean Regions
ADL Partnership Lab
Mexico City, Mexico
NATO ACT ADL
Partnership Lab
Norfolk, VA
ADL
Initiative
Orlando, FL
Academic ADL Co-Lab
Madison, WI
ADL Initiative
Alexandria, VA
ADL Center for Intelligent
Tutoring Systems Research
and Development
Memphis, TN
Poland ADL
Partnership Lab
Warsaw, Poland

5. Design Implications of the xAPI
‣ Background
‣ Introduction to xAPI & LRS
‣ Design Implications
‣ SCORM
‣ Instructional & Learning Design
‣ User Experience (UX) & Interface
‣ Reporting & Analytics
‣ Examples
Agenda

6. 6
“So some things get invented because it is
suddenly possible to invent them.”
- Vint Cerf

7. Background
‣ Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM)
• Created to support courseware interoperability and
reusability within Learning Management Systems (LMS)s
• Enables online instruction in a (desktop) browser only
• Need for Mobile SCORM! (mLearnCon 2010-2011):
Earliest attempts on mobile circa 2004 (PocketSCORM)
• Works for desktop browsers (and will work in the future),
but we now have many more use cases to support

8. What Are the Use Cases?

9. Next Gen “SCORM”
Personalized
and Brokered
Content
• Just-in-Time
• Just-for-You
Access From
Any Device
Learn From:
• Intelligent Tutors
• Mentors and
peers via social
networks
• Self-Discovery
Learn Using:
• Games
• Virtual Worlds
• Intelligent content

10. SCORM “- ilities”
Conceptual Starting Point (High-level requirements)
‣ Accessibility
• Ability to locate and access instructional components from multiple
locations and deliver them to other locations
‣ Interoperability
• Ability to take instructional components developed in one system and
use them in another system
‣ Durability
• Ability to withstand technology changes over time without costly redesign,
reconfiguration, or recoding
‣ Reusability
• Ability to use instructional components in multiple applications, courses,
and contexts

11. Background
‣ Result of Project Tin Can
‣ Tracks experiences, informal learning, real-world
experiences (not just completions)
‣ Activities can be tracked at any level of granularity
‣ Allows data storage and retrieval (ex. 3rd party
reporting and analytics tools)
‣ Enables tracking mobile, games, ITS, and virtual
worlds experiences
‣ Collaboration of industry, government, and academia
‣ Developed by open source community
What is the Experience API?

12. Project Tin Can
‣ ADL BAA Funded Research Effort
‣ Code-named “Project Tin Can” Rustici Software
‣ Requirement to “modernize” SCORM communication
framework (but created new opportunities)
‣ Community-derived use cases, interviews, over 100 white
papers

13. Project Tin Can Top 5 Requirements
1. Should support a variety of content types
2. Should be simple to implement
3. Should support offline or disconnected scenarios
4. Portable content (interoperable across platforms)
5. Improved access to run-time data

14. Experience
Tracking
(xAPI)
Learner
Profile
Content
Brokering
Competency
Networks
Comparing TLA and the SCORM
Run Time
Environment (RTE)
Content
Aggregation
Model
(CAM)
Sequencing
&
Navigation
(S&N)
Training & Learning
Architecture (TLA)
Any Learning Activity"
On Any Platform
Web Browser-based
Instruction

15. Comparing xAPI and the SCORM RTE
‣ Course tracking:
Bookmarking, completion,
time, pass/fail, scores
‣ Multiple scores per object,
unlimited test results and
interactions
‣ Secure
‣ No LMS required

16. Comparing xAPI and the SCORM RTE
‣ No web browser required
‣ Supports offline scenarios
‣ Control over your content
‣ Tracks web or native apps
‣ Tracks serious games,
simulations, virtual worlds
‣ Tracks real-world, informal
learning & performance
‣ Tracks team-based learning

17. How Do We Track All Of These Activities?
Credit: Liz Burow (@Burlix)

18. Experience API (xAPI)
‣ Transfer of data between learning systems
‣ Capture learning data from any system (other than LMS
applications such as HR systems, etc.)
‣ Learning does not have to originate in an LMS (learning takes
place often outside of the LMS on the web, with mentors,
videos, classrooms, conferences, etc.)
‣ Correlation of general activity with learning data (job
performance data with learning data)
‣ Specialized analytics (reports that weren't previously possible)
Key Enablers

19. 19
Activity Streams
‣ http://activitystrea.ms
‣ Collaboration between Google, Facebook,
Microsoft and others
‣ Allows reporting of experiences, not just
completions
‣ Format: <Actor> <Verb> <Object> (I did this):
• Simple Statement:
I (actor) watched (verb) a video on protecting employee
data (activity)
• Complex:
in the context of [information assurance certification
training] with result [timestamp:
2013-0618T18:30:32.360Z ].

20. Example (Formal) Learning Stream
‣ John Connor attempted “The War of 1812, Part 1”
‣ John Connor watched “The Battle of New Orleans Video”
‣ John Connor attempted “The War of 1812, Assessment”
‣ John Connor answered “Question 1” with “True”
‣ John Connor answered “Correctly”
‣ John Connor answered “Question 2” with “False”
‣ John Connor answered “Correctly”
‣ John Connor answered “Question 3” with “a”
‣ John Connor completed “The War of 1812, Assessment”
‣ John Connor scored “90%” on “The War of 1812, Assessment”
‣ John Connor satisfied objective “Battles of the War of 1812”
‣ John Connor mastered objective “The War of 1812” to level “1”
‣ John Connor earned “The War of 1812 – Level 1 Badge”

21. Example (Informal) Learning Stream
‣ Walter Isaacson authored [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ David proofread [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ Margaret approved [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ Simon & Schuster published [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ John purchased [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ Ted read [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ Philip shared [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ Steven liked [Steve Jobs Biography]
‣ Harry reviewed [Steve Jobs Biography]

22. Where Is The Data Stored?

23. Learning Management System (LMS)
User Management
Course Management
Run-Time
Player
Scheduling
Grade Book
Search
Delivery
Learning Records
Statistics
Repository
Sequencing
Preferences AssessmentReports
What is a LMS?
2
3
Learning Management System (LMS)

24. What is a LRS?
2
4
Learning Record Store (LRS)
Learning Records
Learning Record Store (LRS)

25. Reporting
Systems
Assessment
Services
Semantic
Analysis
Statistical
Services
25
Act on It
LRS = Learning Record Store

26. Design Implications
‣ No. xAPI can modernize the SCORM RTE, but doesn’t
replace all aspects of SCORM
‣ A SCORM xAPI verb profile is in the works!
‣ Implication: It can easily work with SCORM. It does
not replace SCORM. New SCORM content developed
could use the xAPI.
Does xAPI replace SCORM?

27. Design Implications
‣ No. SCORM is still useful for tracking web-based
desktop courses.
‣ If your learners need mobile access, SCORM will not
work alone. SCORM will continue to work (durability)
in your LMS.
‣ Implication: Is your current investment in SCORM
producing good results? Are you able to accurately
measure your ROI with current LMS reports?
Does this mean all of the time and money we
invested in SCORM content will be worthless?

28. Design Implications
‣ Only if there is a requirement.
‣ xAPI isn’t a new version of SCORM.
‣ Need to support mobile delivery of your course? Don’t
convert. Think mobile first.
‣ Implication: Is there a need? You could easily make
your SCORM content support the xAPI. But determine
your needs. Is it for more robust reporting/analytics
or mobile? If so you will need to setup a a LRS and
also redesign your content user interface (if mobile).
Will we need to convert our training content
from SCORM to the xAPI?

29. Design Implications
‣ Yes. The SCORM CAM and metadata can still be
used.
‣ An xAPI Content Package Profile is on the roadmap.
Tin Can demonstrated a draft profile.
‣ Implication: SCORM is not optimized for mobile so
xml parsing of large manifests, metadata, etc may
not be appropriate for other learning environments
outside the LMS. Is Reusability and Portability a
requirement?
Can SCORM content packaging work with xAPI?

30. Design Implications
‣ Correlation to score on an assessment or job
performance
‣ Videos within a course (or independent of a course)
‣ Implication: SCORM CMI interaction data was limited
and LMS applications didn’t support test item
analysis consistently. Still requires a systematic
design strategy for where your LRS(s) will reside and
communicate, and which will be authoritative
sources.
How can learner interactions and performance
be analyzed?

31. Instructional Design
We are all experiencing a major paradigm shift
to think not only about instructional design,
but to consider the broader impact on
performance and the learner.

32. Learning Design
‣ How might we redesign our approach to curriculum
development and delivery to center around the needs
of the learner?
‣ Combine the best attributes from disciplines of HCD,
UX, ISD, etc.

33. 33
Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy (Kathy Shrock)
Moving Away from Linear Thinking
The interlocking of the
cognitive process

34. Design Thinking
‣ Term first emerged in 80s (rise of human-centered
design)
‣ Ability to combine empathy for the context of a
problem
‣ Creativity in the generation of insights and solutions
‣ Rationality to analyze and fit solutions to the context
‣ Divergent (ideate) and Convergent (realize)

35. Design Thinking
‣ 7 Steps (non-linear: can occur simultaneously and
iterative)
• Define, research, ideate, prototype, choose, implement,
and learn
‣ Interaction between designers and stakeholders
enhance alignment
‣ Feedback loops help inform intuition over time

36. Design Implications
‣ Visualize large datasets and make informed
decisions
‣ Plan your learning according to previously travelled
“expert” paths
‣ Track user progress, analyze, and group users to
personalize instruction & learning
‣ Use live data to drive business decisions
‣ Report data which was not easily gathered previously
‣ GOAL: Improve PERFORMANCE
Use Data Analytics

37. Design Implications
Think Outside the LMS Interface

38. Design Implications
Browser Bookmarklet (formal, informal, nonformal)

39. ‣ Tappestry (social,
informal)
Design Implications
Social & Informal (Float)

40. Design Implications
Gamification – BlackBerry Gamification
(OnPoint)

41. Design Implications
Gamification – BlackBerry Gamification
(OnPoint)
xAPI statements
sent to partner
system

42. ‣ Procedural tasks (guided
response)
‣ Evaluation by instructor,
mentor may be required
for accurate assessment
‣ Mobile capture using
camera?
‣ Using sensors to report
xAPI Statements?
Design Implications
Psychomotor Domain
Arduino + ElectricImp + xAPI, LRS

43. What’s next?
‣ Foster vendor/user community and tool ecosystem
‣ Attract early adopters to build tools & services
‣ Create open source software libraries, tools, best
practices, and examples
‣ Write articles to illustrate new capabilities enabled by
using the xAPI
‣ Produce prototypes & examples using xAPI
‣ Gather feedback – incorporate community input
‣ Version 1.0 released on 26 April 2013

44. xAPI Resources
‣ xAPI Design Implementer’s WG:
xapi-design@adlnet.gov
‣ xAPI Resources:
http://xapi.adlnet.gov
‣ ADL GitHub:
http://www.github.com/adlnet

45. Related Projects
‣ The MoTIF Project
‣ ISD & Learning Design
for Mobile
• Alternative Approaches
• Device Affordances
• Workflow Process
‣ http://motif.adlnet.gov
‣ adlmobile@adlnet.gov
Wednesday, June 19, 2013 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM | Session #708

46. Your Design Challenges?

47. 47
Let’s Connect!
@ADLmobile
Jason Haag
Mobile Learning Lead
ADL Technical Team
The Tolliver Goup, Inc
jason.haag.ctr@adlnet.gov
Twitter: @mobilejson