SCORM/xAPI Activities

What are SCORM/xAPI activities?

SCORM or xAPI files are files in a format that allows to house structured pedagogical objects, with the main objective of making learning content portable, being able to share it and reuse it. They are pedagogical and interactive activities packaged in a file thanks to these format standards, in order to be ported from one educational platform to another.

LMS is compatible with SCORM/xAPI technology, allows you to import or export files of this format as Activities within the Sprints, and gamify them according to their configuration to reward the student who completes the criteria for passing.

How to create a SCORM/xAPI activity

To create this type of activity, the first step is to have the training activity packaged in a SCORM/xAPI file, with compressed .ZIP format. You must make sure that the activity is correctly configured and the format is appropriate and it can be successfully imported into the platform.

Then access the Learning tab, within the Learning Manager, and look for the Sprint you want to add the SCORM activity to. Click on it to enter the Editor.

Remember that in order to add Activities to a Sprint, it must not have been published before. If the Sprint is Published and then Unpublished, the Editor will be available, but when trying to create the Activity the system will return the error message It is not possible to change activity related data when the sprint has already been published.

Within the Editor, look for the Mission Block in which you want to include the Activity and click on the + New Activity button under it. The menu with the available types is displayed, click on the SCORM/xAPI Activity button (hat icon). Two more options are displayed: Create and Explore.

Create a new SCORM/xAPI activity

The Create option allows you to import a SCORM format file from your computer. Clicking on the pencil icon displays a pop-up menu to create an activity, with the following options:

In the upper left corner, as in other types of activities, Set milestone (flag icon) and Gamify the activity (trophy icon).
Edit Image, in the photo icon in the upper-right corner, to select a header image for the Activity.
Name, to assign a title to the Activity.
Description, a brief introduction to the Activity, which will be visible to the student.
Upload a SCORM/xAPI package, click on the cloud icon to upload the file from your computer. It must be in .ZIP format and a maximum size of 500MB.
Paste a URL, if the SCORM file is available on the network, enter the URL address here for the system to import it.
Display, as in the rest of the activities, the system allows you to choose how the Activity will opened when clicking on it. In the case of SCORM, due to browser restrictions, it will always open in a new window regardless of what you have selected here.
Comments, check or uncheck this flag to allow or not students to add comments to the Activity.

Click on the √ SAVE button and the system proceeds to import the file and create the new Activity. This may take some time, depending on the size of the file. The file has been imported correctly if you go back to the Editor and the Activity appears within the Mission Block.

Browse an existing SCORM/xAPI activity

Explore (file-shaped button) is the second option that appears when you try to create a SCORM Activity, and allows you to explore all the SCORM Activities that have been previously imported into the system to select the one you want and create the new activity from it. This option helps you to reuse a SCORM Activity that has been already uploaded to the platform previously.

Clicking on it displays a new side menu with the Library, a list of all SCORM Activities that were previously imported. You can use the Search... bar at the top to enter keywords related to the activity you are looking for. When you find it, click on the flag on its left and press the √ ADD button. You will go to the same window of new activity that we saw in the previous section, but with the SCORM file already selected.

Tips for creating SCORM/xAPI activities

Use HTML5 to avoid different flash compatibilities on different platforms.
Percentage point scaling, because a content will return the percentile of completeness, but keep in mind that the Learning product will only compute the number of points obtained.
The content must always send a status that corresponds to those required by the Sprint.
If a Sprint includes SCORM content, the execution of it by many users simultaneously must be taken into account. This type of Sprint should be executed by a controlled number of users at a time for a better experience on the platform.
The SCORM file size limit is 500MB, but its size is recommended to be as low as possible to make it easier to load and run the activity.
SCORM activities always open in a new window, regardless of the type of display selected when creating the activity. For this reason it is important that the student or user of the training portal does not block pop-ups in the browser.