For more than two decades, SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model) has been the backbone of e-learning. It standardised packaging, compatibility, and tracking. But in a world where learners expect personalised, interactive, and data-rich experiences, static SCORM packages are beginning to show their limitations. AI offers a way forward — transforming SCORM into the foundation of “smart learning”.

• Linear content: Most SCORM packages deliver the same material to every learner.
• Minimal adaptivity: Beyond completion and score data, SCORM offers little insight into how learners actually engage.
• Static structure: Updating content is often time-consuming and lacks flexibility.

This rigidity is increasingly misaligned with modern expectations for learner-driven, adaptive experiences.

• Personalised SCORM delivery: LMS Collaborator demonstrated how SCORM content built in Articulate Storyline could be personalised by inserting user data such as role, department, and even learner names into the course (Collaborator, 2023).
• Interactive video conversion: Blue Whale Apps re-engineered a static, text-heavy marketing course into interactive SCORM video modules, improving learner engagement and completion rates (Blue Whale Apps, 2022).
• Beyond “click next” courses: Modern SCORM projects now include branching logic and conditionals, enabling different learning paths depending on user responses (LMS Portals, 2023).

• Predictive analytics: Analyses engagement data to anticipate learner difficulties.
• Content recommendations: Suggests modules or resources based on performance.
• Automated tagging & metadata: Improves discoverability and reuse of SCORM assets.
• Adaptive assessments: Adjusts difficulty dynamically inside SCORM modules.

AI-driven enhancements must still comply with:

• SCORM standards (ADL Initiative).
• Emerging specifications like xAPI (Tin Can API) for granular tracking.
• Compliance frameworks such as ISO 21001:2025 or industry-specific requirements.

 

Privacy is also key: using learner profile data must align with GDPR and other data protection laws.

• Collaborator (2023). Personalised SCORM: A guide with examples.
  https://collaborator.biz/en/blog/personalized-scorm-guide/
• Blue Whale Apps (2022). SCORM interactive video training for marketing management.
  https://bluewhaleapps.com/case-studies/scorm-interactive-video-training-for-marketing-management
• LMS Portals (2023). Beyond click-next: Creative ways to make SCORM courses interactive.
  https://www.lmsportals.com/post/beyond-click-next-creative-ways-to-make-scorm-courses-interactive
• ADL Initiative (n.d.) SCORM overview.
  https://adlnet.gov/projects/scorm/
• ADL Initiative. (n.d.). Experience API (xAPI).
  https://adlnet.gov/projects/xapi/
• International Organization for Standardization (2025). ISO 21001:2025 — Educational organisations management systems.
  https://www.iso.org/standard/21001.html