What Are SCORM Standards And Why Your New LMS Must Be Compliant

This tutorial will tell you SCORM meaning, SCORM standards, and why you must invest in a SCORM complaint LMS.

SCORM meaning

Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) is a technological standard that allows all SCORM compliant programs to share and process content. Since its inception in the year 2000, SCORM has emerged as the most important technological standard in online training circles. 

The SCORM system packs content in a way that it can be imported from a compliant LMS to a different compliant learning management system (LMS) without losing any information or requiring any format conversions. This freedom provided by a SCORM LMS allows for information to be shared across web browsers and operating systems.

Now that we have defined and understood SCORM standards, let’s see why you must invest in a SCORM compliant LMS:

SCORM Standards

1. Plug And Play Support

When you purchase a SCORM compliant learning management system, you can rest assured that you (or your team) will never need to spend time converting content files to compatible formats. Simply upload your content to the LMS, test it, and publish it for your learners.

This feature also comes in handy when the need to change your LMS arises again in the future. While it is true that organisations don’t often switch their learning management systems, sometimes, learning administrators may realise a LMS is not up to the mark for their purposes, after using it for a while. 

If such a situation arises, you will not have to spend time creating content compatible with your new LMS, given that it is SCORM compliant.

2. Compatibility With Other Elearning Tools

When both your authoring tool and learning management system are compliant to the same content standards, you can develop training content and immediately publish it. This way, you can save a ton of time in the development and testing process.

Moreover, your training content development and learning administration teams can effectively collaborate without needing to work on different platforms.

Another benefit of having different tools that are compliant to the same standards is that updating training content becomes an effortless task. Simply identify the areas that need updation and upload the updated content and you are good to go!

3. Automated Tracking

Modern SCORM compliant LMS offer automated tracking capabilities that enable learning administrators to track the process of each individual learner.

This information about different learner journeys and interactions with the course can guide optimisations that can further improve the effectiveness of your training material or the learning experience that your organisation offers. 

Not to forget, this data also allows learning administrators to identify learners that may require special attention and address their individual needs. 

In fact, modern LMS also offer the ability to customise a learner’s journey through the course in a way that addresses their needs and plays to their strengths, ultimately improving the overall outcome.

4. Ability To Create An Immersive Training Environment

SCORM compliant LMS enable learning administrators to create immersive and interactive training experiences that are designed to motivate learners. As a result, the learner’s interest in the training remains intact throughout the training, which in turn, improves completion rates and results of the course.

These LMS also allows for learning administrators to enroll different students to different courses on a single platform, enabling them to track their progress at the same place. This way, all the training content and data is available to your training administration team in one place.

This consolidation of information will help make collaborations between your training team more efficient and smooth.

Conclusion

If your organisation values the ability to create impactful training experiences for your employees/clients, there is no alternative to having a SCORM compliant LMS. 

Have you ever used one? How was your experience? Share with us in the comment section.

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