Different people adopt SCORM for different reasons. The beauty of a de facto standard however is that all of those reasons are in the adopter’s self-interest; people adopt SCORM because it saves them time or makes them money. SCORM has many benefits, some of which are misunderstood and others which aren’t heralded enough.

SCORM content is widely used in the e-Learning, instructional design and online training industries. But what exactly is it? Well, SCORM stands for Shareable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM). It is a set of technical standards for presenting content on online training platforms and learning management systems (like DigitalChalk or iSpring Learn). The key is to have a learning management system (LMS) that is SCORM compliant. Not all systems are, in which case you would not be able to use any of your SCORM content.

A wide range of content can be created using SCORM, including presentations, videos, interactive activities, testing and more. Although PowerPoint presentations are among the most widely used, you can create just about anything using a SCORM authoring tool, such as iSpring.

There are many benefits of teaching with SCORM in your online course, but we’ve narrowed it down to 5 main points. Let’s take a look.

1. Wide Accessibility
   Creating your SCORM content allows for easy accessibility, both while you’re creating it and after it is live. Locate and access instructional components from one remote location and easily deliver them to many other locations. Once your content is live on your LMS, you (and your students) can have access anytime, anywhere, 24/7.
2. Easily Adaptable
   SCORM content is another way for you to reach your students and target their unique ways of learning. You can tailor your instruction to any individual and organizational needs you may have. SCORM authoring toolsgive you full flexibility in deciding what type of content you want to create.
3. It’s Reusable 
   Not only can you easily reuse your SCORM content in multiple courses or LMSs, but you can also repurpose the content and create all new content. SCORM authoring tools allow you to save your projects within the application, and you can refer back to them at any time and make your changes. The best part is that when you make your changes, you have the option to automatically update the existing content that is live on your LMS.
4. Increased Engagement 
   Gamification is big in the instructional design and e-Learning industry these days. While some LMSs do not offer gamification and/or leaderboard features within the system itself, you can utilize SCORM content to add your own “gamified” content. Create engaging, interactive content in your SCORM authoring tool, then import it directly into your LMS. It’s that easy. By adding fresh SCORM content, you can increase your student engagement dramatically.
5. Affordable 
   One of the biggest benefits for instructional designers is the affordability. Using SCORM allows you to increase efficiency and productivity by reducing the time and costs involved in delivering traditional instruction. Just buy yourself a SCORM authoring tool and you can use it to create all your content without any extra help! That means instead of hiring pros to do all the work for you, you can save money and do it yourself. Yes, trust us. It’s easy.

When is SCORM a Good Fit?

SCORM is great in many contexts. You definitely want to be SCORM conformant if:

• You want to integrate with other vendors.
• You are creating a large library of learning objects
• You are using an LMS to deliver and manage learning content
• You are designing learning content that might be reused in other contexts
• You are designing learning content that tracks learner performance
• You are designing learning content that will monitor the learner and adapt according to the learner’s needs

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