xAPI: Where it's at & How to get started
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Super quick & dirty readiness assessment for #xAPI BETA @MMTorrance session #DevLearn #xAPIReady
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xAPI: Where it's at & How to get started
- 1. 801 xAPI: Where it’s at & How to get started Megan Torrance, TorranceLearning Las Vegas, NV • October 25 – 27, 2017
- 2. mtorrance@torrancelearning.com @MMTorrance | @xAPIGnome | @Tlearning Megan Torrance
- 3. Where are you on your xAPI journey? iStock 000005088389
- 4. Adobe Stock 100125220 How ready are you?
- 5. xAPI is … X = experience API = application programming interface Specification for sending, storing, retrieving activity about learning and performance experiences Not so much “next generation SCORM” as it is “what will replace SCORM.” Experience API is … Tin Can API is …
- 6. Learning Record Provider Content Activity Statement Learning Record Store You Other & Legacy data Adobe Stock 158410923
- 7. Why xAPI? Measurement & analytics Move data across courses, platforms, functions Record more than just course data Personalize learning Track activity of multiple people at once Offline storage
- 8. What can you do with xAPI? • Learn more about the learning experience – not just elearning • Learn more about the performance • Correlate learning with performance • Offer more targeted training • Support performance in better ways • Use data to learn with others • Compare performance and learning across learners • Deliver and track training outside of the LMS
- 9. Adobe Stock 107605561 xAPI is all about INTEROPERABILIT Y not silos.
- 12. Wikipedia & https://www.adlnet.gov/adl-research/performance-tracking- analysis/experience-api/xapi-background-history/ AICC formed 1988 1993 AICC runtime for LMS 2000 1st version SCORM 2008 LETSI founded
- 13. Wikipedia & https://www.adlnet.gov/adl-research/performance-tracking- analysis/experience-api/xapi-background-history/ 2008 LETSI founded 2009 Last version SCORM 2010 ADL explores tracking stds 2011 BAA for Tin Can 2013 xAPI first release 2014 AICC dissolves 2016 xAPI v1.0.3 2017 DISC & LRS Conf. ? 2018 ? 201 Profiles Specificatio n
- 14. Torrance & Houck, Making Sense of xAPI, 2017
- 15. FORMING STORMING NORMING PERFORMING xAPI needs geeks Geek-free tools emerge Communities of Practice work to define usage Conformance & Certification emerge Project Tin Can Specification Standard More common than SCORM Is xAPI ready for prime time?
- 16. Getting it right Adobe Stock 50646080
- 17. Adobe Stock 107605561 xAPI is all about INTEROPERABILIT Y not silos.
- 18. cmi5: Why should you care? If you have an LMS and you want to use xAPI you’ll want cmi5. • Launch by an LMS of assignable units (AUs) published for xAPI. • Launch & runtime communication data transport between the LMS and AUs. • LMS Course Structure Import/Export • Reporting requirements for the LMS. More info: https://github.com/AICC/CMI-5_Spec_Current
- 19. LRS Conformanc e Specification LRS conformance activities include: • Baseline requirements for LRS • Market education about the specification • Boilerplate language for RFPs • 3rd party vetting of conformance • Vendor accountability and interoperability This should become boring & invisible if we do it right. More info at: www.xapiquarterly.com & ww.datainteroperability.org https://github.com/adlnet/xapi-lrs-conformance-requirements
- 20. xAPI Profiles Specification xAPI Profiles establish a vocabulary & grammar within an industry, media type, context … • When do we use the Profile? • What verbs do we use? • What extensions are required? Recommended? • What do statements look like? • What order should statements be sent? • How do I tell the LRS I’m using this profile? More info at: http://datainteroperability.org/research-activity-xapi-data-interoperability/xapi- profiles/ https://github.com/DataInteroperability/xapi-profiles
- 21. xAPI Ready* Community-driven effort to highlight xAPI use by: • Tools • Platforms • People • Spaces • Events * Implies no conformance, certification or warranty. More info: www.xapi-ready.com | http://www.cafepress.com/xapi_ready
- 22. Getting Started Adobe Stock 79551218
- 23. Pick a project SCORM is not the (best) answer. The project’s sponsor is on board. There’s plenty of data. You can capture or get to the data you need.
- 24. Dollarphotoclub_76293903 Day Hikes are small projects that: Show real impact Help you figure out your data Prove your point Free or very low cost Things you can pick up and do without breaking other things.
- 25. Looking for a project & a team? Try the xAPI Learning Cohort Free, vendor-neutral, 12-week learning-by-doing project-based team learning about xAPI Cohort is good for: • Newbies & Old Pros • Instructional Designers & Programmers • Actively Engaged Team Members & Observers More info: www.torrancelearning.com/xapi-cohort | #xAPICohort
- 27. STEP 1: Send the data Use your current elearning authoring tools Write some custom code Get your product vendor to send the data Use xapiapps to assemble things that aren’t xAPI into a thing that is.
- 28. AUTHORING TOOLS Out of the box: • SCORM-like transactions • Individual page views • Actions and triggers (depends) With a little JavaScript: • Any action or trigger you want More info: www.xapiquarterly.com (Sean Putman), xAPI Cohort Fall 2017 results THIS LIST IS GROWING THIS LIST IS GROWING
- 29. MISC OTHER OPTIONS Not really “authoring tools,” but very deep learning experiences, LMCSes, etc. that send xAPI data. THIS LIST IS INCOMPLETE THIS LIST IS GROWING
- 30. xapiapps
- 31. Riptide Elements : xAPI Statement Inspector The xAPI Inspector allows developers and xAPI practitioners to view, validate, and copy xAPI statements as they are sent to a Learning Record Store (LRS). This extension displays both the full statement and a simplified header highlighting the actor, verb, and object for an easy-to-read version of the statement. https://learning.riptidesoftware.com/
- 33. STEP 2: Receive the data Adobe Stock 134669543
- 34. The integrated approach Users Course s Enrollments SCOR M Data Reporting Courses Classe s Certs Badges SocialLearning Messaging Performance,Talenthooks Reporting Game s Sims Perf Supp Dash boards eCommerce Import/Export to Biz Data LRS SCOR M data
- 36. The sidecar approach Users Course s Enrollments SCOR M Data Reporting Courses Classe s Certs Badges SocialLearning Messaging Performance,Talenthooks Reporting Game s Sims Perf Supp Dash boards eCommerce Import/Export to Biz Data Learning Record Provider Learning Record Provider LRS
- 37. LEARNING RECORD STORES Out of the box: • Data storage & retrieval • Visualizations & reporting Connecting to analytics • Tableau, Microsoft BI, Envision BI, etc. UP TO DATE LIST OF CONFORMANT LRS: https://adopters.adlnet.gov/products/all/0 THIS LIST IS INCOMPLETE THIS LIST IS GROWING
- 38. LMSes WITH LRS INSIDE Out of the box: • Learning management functions • SCORM They may struggle with: • Accepting statements from outside the LMS • Reporting data in extensions UP TO DATE LIST OF CONFORMANT LRS: https://adopters.adlnet.gov/products/all/0 THIS LIST IS INCOMPLETE THIS LIST IS GROWING
- 39. LMSes THAT CONNECT TO YOUR LRS What you can expect: • xAPI statements from courses & experiences • Non-SCORM LMS activity, too THIS LIST IS INCOMPLETE THIS LIST IS GROWING
- 40. Take 2 aspirin… Adobe Stock 63038227
- 41. Start where you are Launch xAPI record providers from the LMS* (cmi5): • Digital Chalk • Learndash • Moodle (with plugin) • Cornerstone, Skillsoft, Saba, UL ELMS Send xAPI from triggers in a SCORM course Export SCORM data from LMS to LRS * This is an incomplete list.
- 42. Wait for your LMS to adopt xAPI Offer to beta test. Get a sidecar LRS for your special projects and new projects. • Two sets of reports • Export xAPI “Completions” LMS
- 43. Start shedding SCORM Stop using SCORM where you can. If you have to, build for SCORM knowing you’ll use xAPI. • Flexible tools that do both • Follow best practices for xAPI now (xAPI Quarterly) Start asking the “x” question.
- 44. Start learning more … Vendor sites www.learnxapi.com xAPI Learning Cohort xAPI Camps & xAPI Party
- 45. xAPI: Where it’s at & How to get started Megan Torrance DevLearn 2017 Session 801 Adobe Stock 167809317
Editor's Notes
- Poll Question: Where are you on your xAPI journey? Stay standing if you can spell xAPI Stay standing if you know what the x stands for in xAPI Stay standing if you have sent an activity statement Stay standing if you have received an activity statement in an LRS Stay standing if you have made a business decision based on an activity statement you’ve received in the LRS
- Included with this session is a sheet you can use to assess (roughly) various components of your organization’s ecosystem to see if you’re ready.
- xAPI is … X = experience API = application programming interface Specification for sending, storing, retrieving activity Some say that xAPI is next gen SCORM Like my smart phone SCORM only tracks 5 boring things
- There are three “parts” to xAPI: The Learning Record Provider, the Activity Statement and the Learning Record Store. The Learning Record Provider is what’s sending the data – if it’s an elearning situation, then the activity provider is the course. You are the one doing the thinking here. The content is what you’re talking about. Again, if we’re talking about elearning, the content is … your content. The Activyt Statement is the format with which we’re sending the data. To be honest, the funnel doesn’t really hold up well as a metaphor. And we’re pouring all these statements into a Learning Record Store, which is a database that stores it all. At some point it may or may not have to mix in with some legacy content and data in order to make sense.
- “X” for Experience, not LAPI – “learning” … track all sorts of things. And here’s the thing: you can do all of these things without xAPI. You just build them yourself. The technology is there – actually, its existed for years and some of you are already doing this. When you do these things with xAPI you are using an interoperable platform for communication – you can add and change pieces, vendors, platforms with far greater ease.
- That’s because it’s all about interoperability. You’re building a large platform … not continuing a bunch of silos held together with bailing twine and bandages. But that’s a completely different story for a different day. Few other industries have attempted this degree of interoperability. This is the real positive legacy of SCORM – it has allowed this industry to boom.
- The pace of change is slower than anyone wants. It’s picking up.
- 1988 AICC formed 1993 AICC Runtime interoperability for LMS 2000 first version of SCORM 2009 last version of SCORM 2008 the Learning-Education-Training Systems Interoperability (LETSI) Federation was formed to investigate the next generation of SCORM requirements and use cases 2010, ADL began investigating new standardized experience tracking capabilities 2011, a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) contract and project to develop an “Experience API.” This project was branded as “Project Tin Can” 2013 xAPI V1.0.1 released 2014 AICC dissolves 2016 v1.0.3 (current)
- 2008 the Learning-Education-Training Systems Interoperability (LETSI) Federation was formed to investigate the next generation of SCORM requirements and use cases 2010, ADL began investigating new standardized experience tracking capabilities 2011, a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) contract and project to develop an “Experience API.” This project was branded as “Project Tin Can” 2013 xAPI V1.0.1 released 2014 AICC dissolves 2016 v1.0.3 (current) IN THE LAST MONTH: ADL funding hiccups, DISC disbanded, IEEE standards body working on a working paper, work getting started on a Profiles specification
- Heck, it was just earlier this spring that xAPI finally made it to ATD’s publications.
- Wikipedia: Dr Bruce Tuckman published his Forming Storming Norming Performing model in 1965. He added a fifth stage, Adjourning, in the 1970s. The Forming Storming Norming Performing theory is an elegant and helpful explanation of team development and behaviour (US spelling: behavior).
- Remember this slide? This is the HARD part – committees of volunteers who commit their time to getting it right. Open source project … lot of moving parts … it’s going to take time. I personally feel that we get better results when we get more people in and working instead of building in an ivory tower and prouncing it from above.
- HOW TO GET STARTED Pick a first project Platform & tools you’ll need to get started What I’ve learned in working with vendors & partners
- HOW TO GET STARTED Pick a first project Platform & tools you’ll need to get started What I’ve learned in working with vendors & partners
- You might set off on a big adventure … where you’ve got budget and visibility and someone to bust down silos (or that someone is you). … or you might set off on a day hike. Day Hikes are small projects that: Show real impact Help you figure out your data Prove your point Free or very low cost Things you can pick up and do without breaking other things.
- August 31 kickoff, runs through Thanksgiving, xAPI Party in December in Detroit
- Regardless of the size of the project you’re doing, you’re going to need tools to send data and a platform to receive it. List of free or almost free tools you can use to get started.
- Out of the box, you can expect data that’s a lot like SCORM, plus individual page views, question answers and a few other things you couldn’t get with SCORM. dominKnow and Lectora support a wider variety of statements based on actions and triggers. All of these tools you can add custom JavaScript to action triggers and send statements to the LRS. ADD SLIDE: For example, our project with University of North Carolina – see us at DemoFest – where we have custom JS added to all sorts of actions in a Storyline course – question sets individually and totals, downloading resources, entering text on screen.
- With xapiapps you’ll get transactions like
- With the integrated approach, a single platform does all the things, including both SCORM and xAPI. It’s all the things that you have come to expect from your LMS provider, with xAPI thrown in, too. One of Megan’s clients has a major integrated learning management system and that platform is adding xAPI support. This means that all the work they did in the last two years to select and implement a major piece of software doesn’t have to be undone, or they don’t have to start over in order to support xAPI projects they have waiting in the wings. Rob’s clients use xAPI-enabled training to train non-employees, where they access the training completely outside the LMS. The integrated LRS permits tracking of the training no matter if the user takes the course on the LMS as an employee, or on a website for business partners… it’s integrated and seamless from a reporting perspective.
- The managed system approach usually puts the LRS at the center of a whole set of systems all talking together. The core system desired around and optimized for xAPI, that then lets you get best-of-breed tools to hook into it. Since you don’t have to be confined to just elearning courses in an LMS for tracking, you you’re tracking things that happen in the real world, and you’re able to go out and do all sorts of things outside your LMS and that pretty well rocks. One of Megan’s clients currently doesn’t have a strong LMS. In fact, their LMS is so “weak” within their organization that the L&D team is using a Wordpress site as a Content Management System from which to offer training – not a WordPress LMS, mind you. An internally hosted Wordpress site. They’re bringing on an LRS product that will be a hub for xAPI transactions from courses launched from the WordPress LMS. And as they bring on other xAPI conformant tools – right now we’re putting in a Curatr learning platform for a key customer group – all of that will feed back into the LRS.
- The Sidecare LRS is a nice happy medium to get started.
- Out of the box, you can expect data that’s a lot like SCORM, plus individual page views, question answers and a few other things you couldn’t get with SCORM. dominKnow and Lectora support a wider variety of statements based on actions and triggers. All of these tools you can add custom JavaScript to action triggers and send statements to the LRS. ADD SLIDE: For example, our project with University of North Carolina – see us at DemoFest – where we have custom JS added to all sorts of actions in a Storyline course – question sets individually and totals, downloading resources, entering text on screen.
- That’s awesome, but what do I do next?
- Ask your LMS provider – it’s entirely possible that they’re planning on implementing LRS support within the year. In this case, you have a few options. You can sit and wait, and you could offer to beta test. (Megan) is a huge fan of being a part of your vendors’ beta testing process – there’s a lot of bonus points you can gain with your vendors and you can call in some chips. In the meantime, you can get a “sidecar” LRS for all your xAPI projects, something that you’re planning to discard once your LMS capability comes online. It’s a nice hedge against the promises of integration for the future that your LMS vendor makes. You’ll have two sets of reports in the meantime and you may need to export your xAPI “completions” to your LMS in case you need a single point of truth and reporting. But it’s not the worst thing in the world. You’ll want to make sure that you’re careful to keep your login information – your actor definitions – consistent between the two systems so that your hair doesn’t fall out trying to match up your data.