Troubleshooting Reporting for your SCORM Module

Note: The content contained in this blog is largely drawn from a presentation by Will Heikoop, OLS.

This article reviews some options after you've created a SCORM module using an e-authoring tool like Articulate Storyline, Articulate Rise, Adobe Captivate, etc. If that sentence didn't make much sense to you - not to worry! You're just a bit earlier in your module creationg journey that this article is intended for (and we'd definitely encourage you to contact the EdTech Office or schedue a consultation if you're interested in building some online course modules). For a quick introduction to what SCORM is, check out our blog post, "What is a SCORM package?" If you're still with me, let's keep going! We're going to review some considerations before you use a SCORM module as well as some trouble shooting tips if you experience one of the more common issues when using SCORM with Quercus.

Before you begin, some general SCORM settings you might consider:

1. If you want the score from the quiz that is part of your module, use the "passed/incomplete" setting.
2. If you want the number of slides viewed (with no quiz), use the "complete/incomplete" setting.

You might also consider when NOT to use a SCORM module

If you are running a higher stakes assessment, including if you want to see specific values entered for specific questios, we'd recommend using a module to share content and to perform knowledge checks, but not for formal quizzing and assessment. In a case like that, we'd recommend using the module for the "learning" portion and using a Quercus Quiz (or other formal assessment tool) for the assessment portion.The data that can be passed from student activity within a module to Quercus, our learning management system, is very limited and there's quite a bit that can wrong between the two tools. Frankly, there's just not a lot you can see from what the student did in the module via Quercus. It's much better suited as an independent self-direct learning object than a robust assessment tool.

Are you having issues with what you see reported in Quercus?

This flow chart takes you through the most common issues that cause reporting 

Are you reporting based on quiz results?

One of the more complex ways to transfer activity from a SCORM module back to the learning management system is to report based on quiz results. The appeal is clear; you want to know how your learners are doing, when quizzed on concepts covered in the module. If you are reporting on quiz results, the key element is to include a Results Slide. You require a results slide and will need to identify the questions to be tracked (all quizzes, or some) and define a passing score to report. If this has not been included this is a likely reason why there is no grade pass back.