If you were able to join us at the Fredrickson Roundtable for Learning Leaders on April 3, you got to hear Mike Rustici speak about Tin Can API. Mike gave us an informative, thought-provoking introduction to the what, why and how of this new protocol. You witnessed his enthusiasm for the possibilities of this new communication protocol that will eventually replace SCORM. And, you can also imagine the possibilities for how the statement “Robin attended the April FRLL” can become a recordable learning event in an LRS.

However, if you weren’t able to make it—due to our space limitations or our capricious weather threat—we wanted to share at least one of the key questions asked and list the answers given.

That question was, “What questions should I ask my LMS vendor about Tin Can?”

Among the many insights Mike gave around this question was a specific list of questions you can start asking your LMS vendors now. To me, this list was an important take-away and a great resource for helping us all get ahead of the change that will soon be coming:

  1. What plans does this LMS have around integrating with or using Tin Can API?
  2. Can we track informal learning in this LMS?
  3. How can I analyze the data that I want to load from Tin Can in this LMS?
  4. Can I use this LMS to capture learning that happens anywhere? How?
  5. Will I be able to get to my data from Tin Can in this LMS?
  6. What types of reports can I generate from this LMS with the data that I’ve gotten from Tin Can?
  7. Can I bring in performance data and marry it to my Tin Can data to give me analytics?
  8. How often do you update the LMS functions you provide, how often do we then also update, and when might this Tin Can work in the LMS?
  9. Will you publish what happens in this LMS as Tin Can statements?
  10. Are you willing to work with us to implement Tin Can data, and if so, at what level of integration?

In addition to this great list of questions, Mike shared some other references that you may want to check out:

If you missed the session and you’re wondering what Tin Can is all about, we recommend these blogs by our own Monique Yenamandra:

And, finally, if you’re having trouble following our TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms) scattered through out this blog post, here’s a quick glossary to help you out:

  • API: application programming interface
  • LMS: Learning Management System
  • LRS: Learning Record Store

We’d love to hear from you about what you heard in the presentation that was meaningful, thought provoking, or got your curiosity going. Share your thoughts in our comments!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *