The eLearning industry is deeply rooted in numerous technologies. Every time there is a major breakthrough in the tech sector, eLearning can potentially benefit from it.
So far, technologies have helped cloud-based LMS, and online training software solutions deliver excellent user experiences, automate grading, and enable custom learning paths.
The newest addition to the online learning family is xAPI. This software specification has a lot to offer to LMS and the eLearning community. xAPI adoption rates have increased by 150% over the last three years.
What is xAPI?
When it comes to the software specifications being used in the eLearning industry, so far, SCORM was the ultimate king. xAPI is here to overtake the landscape. It is a new or modern specification for learning technology.
xAPI was made as an answer to the modern challenges of education institutions, L&D departments, and professional trainers. It is built to track the learning activities of modern learners. Thanks to xAPI, LMS solutions can now track learning experiences across platforms.
To help you understand the benefits of xAPI, we’ve compiled a list of 7 reasons to use xAPI in your learning management system. Take a look:
Easy to Integrate into Cloud-Based LMS
Many people are afraid to implement new software solutions in existing systems because they often cause unpredicted disruptions. Until recently, cloud-based LMS solutions were focusing on SCORM to track and record learning experience. While it came with certain disadvantages such as low security and limited tracking of types of learning activities, it proved reliable.
xAPI tackles all the disadvantages that SCORM did for eLearning solutions and more. What’s important is that it is easy to implement. It does everything the latest version of SCORM does but in a better, more efficient way.
Companies that develop online training software have already started making their systems compliant with xAPI specifications. If the solution says it’s xAPI compliant, you can integrate it without breaking a sweat.
Less Troubleshooting Equals More Work
An LMS system has to be error-free to be useful, or it at least has to generate a controllable amount of errors. Unfortunately, SCORM-based LMS solutions are not. Why? Well, SCORM specification is now 20 years old, and it’s very buggy. It is simply based on older technologies that limit its integration in new online learning solutions.
xAPI, on the other hand, is based on cutting edge technologies. It doesn’t know the limits in terms of being used on different platforms, and in offline and online mode. It collects learning experience and stores it in a standardized and easy-to-read format. xAPI is significantly less buggy, meaning that you won’t have to spend hours troubleshooting it.
Insightful LMS Reports
Another reason to integrate xAPI in your LMS is reporting. LMS reporting features depend on the software specification. If you don’t capture learning experiences, you are losing a lot of information that you can use to improve your learning materials and enhance your programs. Integrating xAPI will bring you one step closer to perfecting your online learning game.
xAPI is built on technologies that allow data to be stored in an easy-to-interpret way. xAPI records activities or learning experience in the form of Statements. One statement includes “Actor – Verb – Activity (object)”.
xAPI enables LMS to generate data-rich reports that you can leverage to make crucial decisions and get insights into learner’s behavior and learning material performance. xAPI-compliant online training software is vital for L&D teams as they can easily identify gaps in employee knowledge and give them credit for the learning efforts outside of provided learning materials.
Track All Learning Experiences
Tracking learning experiences was easy in the past because most of it took place inside the LMS. But modern learners are different. They like to do their own research online, watch videos, read guides, check the latest studies, and so on. SCORM is unable to answer the new tracking needs.
Integrating xAPI in your LMS will enable you to track, record, and store all learning activities in one database. You can see the entire learning path of every individual and identify the sections in your course that result in learners jumping out of the course to seek information elsewhere.
Thanks to enriched data, you will be able to make more accurate decisions and make improvements where and when they are most needed.
Pursue New Learning Opportunities
Nobody is 100% sure about future trends in the online learning industry, making future-proofing extremely hard. When you are limited to technology such as SCORM, future-proofing your LMS is even harder. This is where xAPI can prove helpful.
Whether online learning makes a shift toward gamification, augmented reality, or VR learning, or it introduces simulation to promote knowledge retention, xAPI will get you covered. It can track all the user activities, which makes it your best ally in future-proofing your LMS and answering new learners’ requirements and expectations.
Unlock True Mobile Learning
Everyone has a smartphone these days. To unlock the full potential of your online learning efforts, you have to make your LMS mobile-friendly. This goes beyond making tests and learning materials fit and look good on a variety of screen sizes. You have to be able to track learning activities on mobile, whether a user is offline or online.
With your LMS armed with xAPI, you will be able to track learning activities 24/7. Even when a mobile user is offline, the software will keep recording the activities only to upload them to a central database the moment there is an internet connection.
Seamlessly Personalize Learning Paths
One of the most widely accepted eLearning trends is the personalization of learning paths. Every individual has unique knowledge, skillset, preferences, and learning paces. Empowering your LMS to cater to the specific learners’ needs is a great way to promote knowledge retention.
Since xAPI enables you to tap into the learning path for every individual enrolled in a course or training, you will be able to make personalized learning paths. Thanks to the real-time tracking, you can make this a part of your ongoing strategy to delight your students or employees.
Wrapping Up
Education and training programs stand to benefit from xAPI integration. There are plenty of reasons to use it in your online learning programs. Whether you use an LMS or other online training software, xAPI can help you personalize the learning experience, track all learning efforts, and get insights into powerful reports.
