CanCore and SCORM Compared: DRAFT (Last updated: July 3, 2001)

The relationship between CanCore and the Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) is not one that can be captured through a simple one-to-one comparison. SCORM, in its own words, "is a reference model that references a set of interrelated technical specifications and guidelines designed to meet the [Department of Defence's] high level requirements for Web-based learning content" (SCORM Version 1.1). CanCore, on the other hand, references only one standard --the Learning Object Metadata standard-- to meet the needs of educators and educational technologists in Canada and elsewhere. (The additional technical specifications referenced by SCORM include the IMS Content Packaging Specification, and the AICC [Aviation Industry CBT Committee] CMI Data Model and the AICC CM1001 Interoperability Guidelines.) Cancore and SCORM are related and thus can be compared only in terms of their use of the Learning Object Metadata standard. This relationship of SCORM and CanCore can be schematized in the Venn diagram, below.

Diagram 1: CanCore shares with SCORM only one of the many areas that the latter attempts to address. The small part of CanCore that lies outside of SCORM would be represented, for example, by the refinements to the educational elements and vocabularies that CanCore is undertaking.

SCORM provides three listings of LOM elements seen as core --or rather, as "mandatory" versus "optional". Each of the three listings is provided for a particular level of content aggregation identified by SCORM: "Raw Media", "Content" and "Course". Only the "Raw Media" level is used as the basis of comparison in this document. SCORM defines "Raw Media" content as "Assets such as illustrations, documents, or media streams". It further defines "assets" as "electronic representations of media, text, images, web pages, assessment objects or other pieces of data that can be delivered by a Web client." It is precisely with such objects that projects affiliated with CanCore have been concerned.

On these terms, SCORM and CanCore are fully compatible. All 11 elements that SCORM identifies as mandatory for Raw Media are also identified as "core" in the CanCore Application Profile.

The individual CanCore elements and their status for the "Raw Media" level in SCORM are listed below.

To find out more about the SCORM initiative, see: http://www.adlnet.org/Scorm/scorm_index.cfm

Nr	Name	Explanation	SCORM (Raw Media)
1	general	Groups information describing learning object as a whole.	mandatory
1.1	identifier	Globally unique label for learning object	Reserved
1.2	title	Learning Object's name.	mandatory
1.3	catalogentry	Designation given to resource.	optional
1.3.1	catalog	Source of following string value.	optional
1.3.2	entry	Actual value.	optional
1.4	language	Learning object's language.	optional
1.5	description	Describes learning object's content.	mandatory
1.7	coverage	Temporal / spatial characteristics of content	optional
2	lifecycle	History and current state of resource.	optional
2.1	version	The edition of the learning object.	optional
2.3	contribute	Persons or organizations contributing to the resource.	optional
2.3.1	role	Kind of contribution.	optional
2.3.2	entity	Entity or entities involved, most relevant first.	optional
2.3.3	date	Date of contribution.	optional
3	metametadata	Features of the description rather than the resource.	mandatory
3.1	identifier	A unique label for the meta-data.	Reserved
3.2	catalogentry	Designation given to the meta-data instance.	optional
3.2.1	catalog	Source of following string value.	optional
3.2.2	entry	Actual string value.	optional
3.3	contribute	Persons or organizations contributing to the meta-data.	optional
3.3.1	role	Kind of contribution.	optional
3.3.2	entity	Entity or entities involved, most relevant first.	optional
3.3.3	date	Date of contribution.	optional
3.4	metadatascheme	Names the structure of the meta-data.	mandatory
3.5	language	Language of the meta-data instance. This is the default language for all LangString values.	optional
4	technical	Technical features of the learning object.	mandatory
4.1	format	Technical data type of the resource.	mandatory
4.2	size	The size of the digital resource in bytes.	optional
4.3	location	A location or a method that resolves to a location of the resource.	mandatory
4.6	otherplatformrequirements	Information about other software and hardware requirements.	optional
4.7	duration	Time a continuous learning object takes when played at intended speed, in seconds.	optional
5	educational	Educational or pedagogic features of the learning object.	optional
5.2	learningresourcetype	Specific kind of resource, most dominant kind first.	optional
5.5	intendedenduserrole	Normal user of the learning object, most dominant first.	optional
5.6	context	The typical learning environment where use of learning object is intended to take place.	optional
5.7	typicalagerange	Age of the typical intended user.	optional
5.11	language	User's natural language.	optional
6	rights	Conditions of use of the resource.	mandatory
6.1	cost	Whether use of the resource requires payment.	mandatory
6.2	copyrightandotherrestrictions	Whether copyright or other restrictions apply.	mandatory
6.3	description	Comments on the conditions of use of the resource.	optional
7	relation	Features of the resource in relationship to other learning objects.	optional
7.1	kind	Nature of the relationship between the resource being described and the one identified by Resource (7.2).	optional
7.2	resource	Resource the relationship holds for.	optional
7.2.1	identifier	Unique Identifier of the other resource.	Reserved
7.2.3	catalogentry	Description of the other resource.	*Introduced in the 1.2 version of IMS, not yet referenced in SCORM.
9	classification	Description of a characteristic of the resource by entries in classifications.	optional
9.1	purpose	Characteristics of the resource described by this classification entry.	optional
9.2	taxonpath	A taxonomic path in a specific classification.	optional
9.2.1	source	A specific classification.	optional
9.2.2	taxon	An entry in a classification.	optional
9.2.2.2	entry	Taxon's name or label.	optional
9.4	keyword	Keywords describing learning objective relative to its stated purpose.	optional