ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009

Information technology — Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM®) 2004 3rd Edition — Part 4: Sequencing and Navigation Version 1.1

Within the context of the Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM®), ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009 describes how SCORM® conformant content can be sequenced to the learner through a set of learner or system-initiated navigation events. The branching and flow of that content can be described by a predefined set of activities. ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009 covers the essential Learning Management System (LMS) responsibilities for sequencing content objects (Sharable Content Objects [SCOs] or Assets) during run-time and allowing SCOs to indicate navigation requests. In addition, guidance is offered for providing navigation controls to learners. General subjects discussed include the following: Sequencing Concepts and Terminology (e.g., Learning Activities, Activity Trees, Clusters); Sequencing Definition Model (i.e., detailed descriptions and requirements of the sequencing information that can be applied to learning activities); Sequencing Behavior Model (i.e., detailed descriptions of LMS behaviors to prescribed sequencing information and learner's experience with learning content); Navigation Controls and Requirements; Navigation Data Model. Communication between content and LMSs facilitates use of SCORM® Sequencing and Navigation to present content to learners based on learner choices and performance at run-time. This communication also enables LMSs to track learner completion and progress while content is presented to the learner. ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009 describes in detail how sequencing behaviors are applied to track learner progress.

Technologies de l'information — Modèle de référence d'objet de contenu partageable (SCORM®) 2004 3e édition — Partie 4: Séquencement et navigation Version 1.1

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 02-Dec-2009
• ICS: 03.100.30 - Management of human resources
• ICS: 35.240.90 - IT applications in education
• ICS: 35.240.99 - IT applications in other fields
• Technical Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 36 - Information technology for learning, education and training
• Drafting Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 36 - Information technology for learning, education and training
• Current Stage: 9093 - International Standard confirmed
• Completion Date: 28-Sep-2021

Standards Content (Sample)

TECHNICAL ISO/IEC
REPORT TR
29163-4
First edition
2009-12-15


Information technology — Sharable
Content Object Reference Model
(SCORM®) 2004 3rd Edition —
Part 4:
Sequencing and Navigation Version 1.1
Technologies de l'information — Modèle de référence d'objet de
contenu partageable (SCORM®) 2004 3e édition —
Partie 4: Séquencement et navigation Version 1.1




Reference number
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)
©
ISO/IEC 2009

---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)
PDF disclaimer
This PDF file may contain embedded typefaces. In accordance with Adobe's licensing policy, this file may be printed or viewed but
shall not be edited unless the typefaces which are embedded are licensed to and installed on the computer performing the editing. In
downloading this file, parties accept therein the responsibility of not infringing Adobe's licensing policy. The ISO Central Secretariat
accepts no liability in this area.
Adobe is a trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated.
Details of the software products used to create this PDF file can be found in the General Info relative to the file; the PDF-creation
parameters were optimized for printing. Every care has been taken to ensure that the file is suitable for use by ISO member bodies. In
the unlikely event that a problem relating to it is found, please inform the Central Secretariat at the address given below.


COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT


©  ISO/IEC 2009
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from either ISO at the address below or
ISO's member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
Case postale 56 • CH-1211 Geneva 20
Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
E-mail [e-mail]
Web www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland

ii © ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 2 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are members of
ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical committees
established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical activity. ISO and IEC
technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international organizations, governmental
and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the work. In the field of information
technology, ISO and IEC have established a joint technical committee, ISO/IEC JTC 1.
International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The main task of the joint technical committee is to prepare International Standards. Draft International
Standards adopted by the joint technical committee are circulated to national bodies for voting. Publication as
an International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the national bodies casting a vote.
In exceptional circumstances, the joint technical committee may propose the publication of a Technical Report
of one of the following types:
— type 1, when the required support cannot be obtained for the publication of an International Standard,
despite repeated efforts;
— type 2, when the subject is still under technical development or where for any other reason there is the
future but not immediate possibility of an agreement on an International Standard;
— type 3, when the joint technical committee has collected data of a different kind from that which is normally
published as an International Standard (“state of the art”, for example).
Technical Reports of types 1 and 2 are subject to review within three years of publication, to decide whether
they can be transformed into International Standards. Technical Reports of type 3 do not necessarily have to
be reviewed until the data they provide are considered to be no longer valid or useful.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent
rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4, which is a Technical Report of type 3, was prepared by the Advanced Distributed
®
Learning (ADL) Initiative (as SCORM 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation Version 1.1) and was
adopted, under a special “fast-track procedure”, by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information
technology, in parallel with its approval by the national bodies of ISO and IEC.
ISO/IEC TR 29163 consists of the following parts, under the general title Information technology — Sharable
®
Content Object Reference Model (SCORM ) 2004 3rd Edition:
⎯ Part 1: Overview Version 1.1
⎯ Part 2: Content Aggregation Model Version 1.1
⎯ Part 3: Run-Time Environment Version 1.1
⎯ Part 4: Sequencing and Navigation Version 1.1
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved iii

---------------------- Page: 3 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)



This page intentionally left blank.


iv © ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 4 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)





Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL)






SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition
Sequencing and Navigation (SN)
Version 1.1














For questions and comments visit
Ask The Experts at ADLNet.gov


SCORM® is a registered trademark of the Department of Defense, an agency of the United States
government, located at The Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301.
SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation (SN) Version 1.1                                    v
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 5 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)





























This page intentionally left blank.


vi SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation (SN) Version 1.1
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 6 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)



Chief Technical Architect
Philip Dodds


Technical Editor
Angelo Panar




Acknowledgements
ADL would like to thank the following organizations and their members for their
continued commitment to building interoperable e-learning standards and specifications:
Alliance of Remote Instructional Authoring & Distribution Networks for
Europe (ARIADNE) (http://www.ariadne-eu.org/)

Aviation Industry CBT Committee (AICC)  (http://www.aicc.org/)

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Learning
Technology Standards Committee (LTSC) (http://ltsc.ieee.org/)

IMS Global Learning Consortium, Inc. (http://www.imsglobal.org/)

ADL would also like to thank the ADL Community for their commitment and
contribution to the evolution of SCORM.
SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition documentation suite reprinted with permission from IEEE Std. 1484.11.1-2004 IEEE
Standard for Learning Technology – Data Model for Content to Learning Management System Communication,
Copyright 2004, by IEEE; IEEE Std. 1484.11.2-2003 IEEE Standard for Learning Technology – ECMAScript
Application Programming Interface for Content to Runtime Services Communication, Copyright 2003, by IEEE; IEEE
Std. 1484.12.1-2002 IEEE Standard for Learning Object Metadata, Copyright 2002, by IEEE; and IEEE Std.
1484.12.3-2005 IEEE Standard for Learning Technology – Extensible Markup Language (XML) Schema Definition
Language Binding for Learning Object Metadata, Copyright 2005, by IEEE. The IEEE disclaims any responsibility or
liability resulting from the placement and use in the described manner.
SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition documentation suite reprinted with permission from IMS Content Packaging v1.1.4
Copyright 2004, by IMS Global Learning Consortium Inc. and IMS Simple Sequencing v1.0 Copyright 2003, by IMS
Global Learning Consortium Inc. IMS Global Learning Consortium has made no inquiry into whether or not the
implementation of third party material included in this document would infringe upon the intellectual property rights of
any party. Recipients of this document are requested to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant
patent claims or other intellectual property rights of which they may be aware that might be infringed by any
implementation of the document set forth in this document, and to provide supporting documentation to IMS. This
material is being offered without any warranty whatsoever, and in particular, any warranty of non-infringement is
expressly disclaimed. Any use of this material shall be made entirely at the implementer’s own risk, and neither the
IMS Global Learning Consortium, nor any of its members or submitters, shall have any liability whatsoever to any
implementer or third party for any damages of any nature whatsoever, directly or indirectly, arising from the use of this
material.
.
SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation (SN) Version 1.1                                   vii
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 7 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)





This page intentionally left blank.


viii SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation (SN) Version 1.1
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 8 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)




Table of Contents



SECTION 1  SCORM® SEQUENCING AND NAVIGATION (SN). 1-1
1.1.  INTRODUCTION TO THE SCORM SEQUENCING AND NAVIGATION (SN) BOOK . 1-3
1.1.1.  What is Covered in the SCORM Sequencing and Navigation Book? . 1-3
1.1.2.  Using the SCORM Sequencing and Navigation Book . 1-4
1.1.3.  Relationship with other SCORM Books. 1-5
1.2.  SCORM SEQUENCING OVERVIEW . 1-7
1.3.  SCORM NAVIGATION OVERVIEW . 1-8
SECTION 2  SEQUENCING CONCEPTS . 2-1
2.1.  CONTENT STRUCTURE AND THE ACTIVITY TREE . 2-3
2.1.1.  Deriving an Activity Tree from a Content Package. 2-4
2.1.2.  Using Sequencing Collections. 2-5
2.1.3.  Cluster . 2-6
2.1.4.  Using (Sub) Manifests in a Content Package . 2-7
2.1.5.  Learning Activity. 2-8
2.1.6.  Attempts . 2-9
2.2.  STARTING AND STOPPING A SEQUENCING SESSION. 2-10
2.3.  ACTIVITY STATUS TRACKING . 2-11
2.3.1.  Communicative and Non-communicative Content. 2-11
2.3.2.  Suspending and Resuming Activities . 2-11
2.3.3.  Data Persistence. 2-11
2.3.4.  Learning Objectives. 2-12
SECTION 3  THE SEQUENCING DEFINITION MODEL . 3-1
3.1.  SEQUENCING DEFINITION MODEL OVERVIEW. 3-3
3.2.  SEQUENCING CONTROL MODES . 3-4
3.2.1.  Sequencing Control Choice. 3-5
3.2.2.  Sequencing Control Choice Exit . 3-7
3.2.3.  Sequencing Control Flow . 3-8
3.2.4.  Sequencing Control Forward Only. 3-9
3.2.5.  Use Current Attempt Objective Information . 3-10
3.2.6.  Use Current Attempt Progress Information. 3-11
3.3.  CONSTRAIN CHOICE CONTROLS. 3-13
3.3.1.  Constrain Choice . 3-13
3.3.2.  Prevent Activation. 3-14
3.4.  SEQUENCING RULE DESCRIPTION . 3-16
3.4.1.  Condition Combination . 3-16
3.4.2.  Rule Conditions.3-17
3.4.3.  Rule Condition Referenced Objective . 3-18
3.4.4.  Rule Condition Measure Threshold. 3-19
3.4.5.  Rule Condition Operator . 3-19
3.4.6.  Rule Action. 3-20
3.5.  LIMIT CONDITIONS. 3-23
3.5.1.  Attempt Limits .3-23
3.5.2.  Attempt Absolute Duration . 3-24
3.6.  AUXILIARY RESOURCES. 3-26
3.7.  ROLLUP RULE DESCRIPTION . 3-27
3.7.1.  Condition Combination . 3-27
3.7.2.  Rollup Conditions. 3-28
3.7.3.  Rollup Condition Operator . 3-29
3.7.4.  Rollup Child Activity Set . 3-29
SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation (SN) Version 1.1                                   ix
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 9 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)


3.7.5.  Rollup Actions. 3-32
3.8.  ROLLUP CONTROLS . 3-33
3.8.1.  Rollup Objective Satisfied . 3-33
3.8.2.  Rollup Objective Measure Weight. 3-33
3.8.3.  Rollup Progress Completion. 3-34
3.9.  ROLLUP CONSIDERATION CONTROLS . 3-35
3.9.1.  Measure Satisfaction If Active. 3-37
3.9.2.  Required For Rollup Elements. 3-38
3.10.  OBJECTIVE DESCRIPTION. 3-40
3.10.1.  Local Objectives vs. Shared Global Objectives. 3-42
3.10.2.  Objectives Global to System. 3-43
3.10.3.  Objective Map .3-44
3.11.  SELECTION CONTROLS . 3-46
3.12.  RANDOMIZATION CONTROLS. 3-48
3.13.  DELIVERY CONTROLS. 3-49
3.13.1.  Tracked . 3-49
3.13.2.  Completion Set by Content. 3-50
3.13.3.  Objective Set by Content . 3-50
SECTION 4  SEQUENCING BEHAVIORS . 4-1
4.1.  SEQUENCING BEHAVIOR OVERVIEW . 4-3
4.2.  TRACKING MODEL . 4-4
4.2.1.  Tracking Model Overview. 4-4
4.3.  OVERALL SEQUENCING PROCESS . 4-19
4.3.1.  Sequencing Loop . 4-21
4.4.  NAVIGATION BEHAVIOR. 4-24
4.4.1.  Navigation Events. 4-24
4.4.2.  Navigation Controls. 4-24
4.4.3.  Navigation Requests . 4-25
4.4.4.  Navigation Request Process. 4-26
4.5.  TERMINATION BEHAVIOR. 4-28
4.5.1.  Termination Requests . 4-28
4.5.2.  Evaluating Post Condition and Exit Action Rules . 4-29
4.5.3.  Termination Request Process. 4-30
4.5.4.  End Attempt Process. 4-32
4.6.  ROLLUP BEHAVIOR . 4-35
4.6.1.  Overall Rollup Process . 4-36
4.6.2.  Evaluating Rollup Rules . 4-37
4.6.3.  Measure Rollup Process. 4-39
4.6.4.  Objective Rollup Process. 4-40
4.6.5.  Activity Progress Rollup Process. 4-44
4.7.  SELECTION AND RANDOMIZATION BEHAVIOR. 4-47
4.7.1.  Select Child Process. 4-47
4.7.2.  Randomize Children Process . 4-48
4.8.  SEQUENCING BEHAVIOR. 4-49
4.8.2.  Sequencing Request Process. 4-50
4.8.3.  Evaluating Limit Conditions. 4-51
4.8.4.  Evaluating Precondition Sequencing Rules . 4-51
4.8.5.  Flow Subprocess. 4-52
4.8.6.  Overall Sequencing Process. 4-54
4.9.  DELIVERY BEHAVIOR. 4-57
4.9.1.  Delivery Request Process . 4-58
4.9.2.  Content Delivery Environment Process. 4-58
4.9.3.  Launching a Content Object . 4-59
SECTION 5  THE SCORM® NAVIGATION MODEL . A-1
5.1.  NAVIGATION MODEL OVERVIEW . A-3
x SCORM® 2004 3rd Edition Sequencing and Navigation (SN) Version 1.1
© ISO/IEC 2009 – All rights reserved

---------------------- Page: 10 ----------------------
ISO/IEC TR 29163-4:2009(E)


5.2.  TRIGGERING NAVIGATION REQUESTS . A-4
5.3.  PROCESSING NAVIGATION REQUESTS . A-7
5.4.  TERMINATION OF A CONTENT OBJECT THROUGH NAVIGATION . A-9
5.5.  NAVIGATION AND AUXILIARY RESOURCES. A-10
5.6.  USER INTERFACE (UI) DEVICES FOR NAVIGATION. A-11
5.6.1.  Providing UI Devices for Navigation. A-11
5.6.2.  Using the isvisible Attribute. A-11
5.6.3.  Presentation Information Model. A-12
5.6.4.  Run-Time Communication of Navigation Requests. A-13
5.6.5.  The SCORM Run-Time Navigation Data Model . A-14
5.6.6.  Request . A-15
5.6.7.  Request Valid .A-18
APPENDIX A  ACRONYM LISTING. A-1
ACRONYM LISTING. A-3
APPENDIX B REFERENCES .B-1
REFERENCES.B-3
APPENDIX C SEQUENCING BEHAVIOR PSEUDO CODE .C-1
SEQUENCING BEHAVIOR PSEUDO CODE.C-3
APPENDIX D SEQUENCING EXCEPTION CODES. D-1
SEQUENCING EXCEPTION CODES . D-3
APPENDIX E DOCUMENT REVISON HISTORY.E-1
DOCUMENT REVISION HISTORY .E-3



List of Figures


Figure 1.1a The Sequencing and Navigation Book as Part of the SCORM Bookshelf. 1-3
Figure 2.1a: An Example of an Activity Tree . 2-3
Figure 2.1.1a: Relationship between a Content Organization and an Activity Tree. 2-4
Figure 2.1.2a: Cluster Example. 2-7
Figure 2.2a: Sample Learning Activity . 2-8
Figure 3.2.1a: Default Sequencing Control Choice Behavior . 3-5
Figure 3.2.1b: Choosing a Cluster Activity with Flow Enabled. 3-6
Figure 3.2.1c: Choosing a Cluster Activity with Flow Disabled. 3-7
Figure 3.2.2a: Choice Exit Example. 3-8
Figure 3.2.3a: Sequencing Control Flow Behavior . 3-9
Figure 3.2.4a: Sequencing Control Forward Only Example . 3-10
Figure 3.3.1a: Constrain Choice Example. 3-14
Figure 3.3.2a: Prevent Activation Example. 3-15
Figure 3.4a: Sequencing Rule Conditions and Actions.3-16
Figure 3.7a: Rollup Rule Child Activity Set, Conditions and Actions. 3-27
Figure 3.9.1a: Measure Satisfaction If Active Example. 3-37
Figure 3.10a: Objective Description and Objective Progress Information Relationship. 3-41
Figure 3.10.1a: Sharing Objectives Example . 3-43
Figure 4.2.1a: Relationship between the Run-Time Environment Data Model and the Tracking Model . 4-5
Figure 4.2.1.1a: Tracking Model. 4-6
Figure 4.2.6.1a Current Activ
...