Designing and Testing xAPI Profiles Using the xAPI Profile Server and DATASIM

Overview: xAPI Profiles are used to guide the implementation of xAPI for different platforms, media types, and instructional domains. The use of xAPI Profiles greatly enhances semantic interoperability among learning activities developed by different vendors. This webinar focuses on the process for designing an xAPI Profile, building it using the xAPI Profile Server, and testing it using DATASIM. Attendees will learn how to configure DATASIM variables to generate the desired style and quantity of xAPI statements so they can be connected to an LRS dashboard to illustrate the types of analytics available from any given profile. Together these tools enable any organization to build, test, and evaluate a comprehensive strategy for implementing xAPI to best meet their needs.

Subject: The xAPI Profile Specification is currently working its way through the IEEE Learning Technology Standards Committee to become an approved standard. xAPI Profiles help guide the implementation of xAPI across different types of systems, media, or instructional domains. The xAPI Profile Server was developed by the ADL Initiative to make it easier to author, share, and validate profiles. A previous webinar (recorded here) held in December 2020 discussed why xAPI Profiles are needed. This webinar will focus on how xAPI Profiles are created and tested.

DATASIM is an open-source application that provides the ability to simulate and generate xAPI data quickly, accurately, and at scale. DATASIM is used to validate profiles after they’ve been created by generating xAPI data that conforms to the vocabularies, concepts, and patterns described in each xAPI Profile. Organizations can use DATASIM to evaluate the aggregate of data generated by using numerous xAPI Profiles across the organization.

Audience: Data engineers, data analysts, learning professionals, training specialists, and IT professionals involved in knowledge management, learning content and social learning; and executive decision-makers looking for micro learning and performance ecosystem approaches that go beyond traditional training and tracking approaches.

About the Speakers

Andy Johnson is a SETA contractor serving as the Specifications and Standards Manager at the ADL Initiative. His current focus is on the identification of new standards and specifications that promote interoperability across DoD systems. Andy has led many working groups and standardization efforts, including those for the Experience Application Programming Interface (xAPI). Andy has worked with the ADL Initiative for over 15 years and was one of the developers of the Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) and its accompanying research and tools.

Florian Tolk is a SETA contractor and a Software Engineer with the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Initiative. In this role, he provides technical knowledge in working groups for spec and standard development, as well as designing internal systems for Training and Education experiments. Prior to working for the ADL Initiative, he worked as a junior developer for SimIS Inc. and helped develop training simulations such as the Automated Intelligent Mentoring System (AIMS).

Contact: If you have any questions about the webinar, please contact the Technical Webinar Coordinator, Liz Bradley, at Elizabeth.Bradley.ctr@ADLnet.gov.