Troubleshooting a SCORM Course

If a user has trouble with a SCORM course, there are several steps you should take to troubleshoot the issue.

Go to Resources > Maintain Learning Resources, search for the course, and edit it.  Once the course is open, go to the On-line tab.

Under Tracking Options, ensure that the Compatibility/Compliance Model field is set to SCORM 1.2/2004 Compliant Resource.

Ensure that the Score Model for the course is set to The resource will score itself as complete.

If any changes have been made to the course structure since the original upload, you may need to initialize the manifest.  To initialize the manifest, expand the SCORM options and click on the Initialize Manifest button at the bottom.

When you click Initialize Manifest, the system will display a warning box.  Click OK to continue.

When to use the Initialize Manifest Process

The Initialize Manifest Process ensures that the SCORM database definition for the course is aligned with the structure in the SCORM course files (imsmanifest.xml and other definition files).  This translates to bookmarking, quiz structure, and scoring.

You should use Initialize Manifest when a course content update includes one of the following:

• Pages have either been added or deleted from the course.
• New quizzes have been inserted.
• Changes have been made to the final quiz (questions added, changed, or deleted).

It is not necessary to complete the initialize manifest process if the course content changes were just text updates or graphic changes within pages.  If no structural changes were made to the content, then you just need to upload the new course files through the course wizard.

Impact of the Initialize Manifest Process

If structural changes were made in the course content, and the Initialize Manifest process was not run, the course may have unpredictable behavior in terms of bookmarking or final quiz scoring.  It could also affect course completions if they are score-dependent.  It will not affect completions if the course is sending the completion and the resource is set to Score Model resource will mark itself complete.

It is important to note that the Initialize Manifest Process will not affect completed enrollments.  However, it will clear out the course status for all Incomplete enrollments, and all session transaction data for incomplete enrollments will be lost.  Users who have begun the course (but not yet completed it) will be bookmarked back to the first page of the course.

Testing the Course

If you have made recent changes to the course or the course simply is misbehaving, you may want to test the course by having the LMS run an audit session.  To begin an audit session, look at the Resource Links section of the On-line tab and find the Location field.  A Test button appears immediately to the right of this field as shown below:

Click the Test button to begin the audit session with the LMS.

The course will launch in one window, a client-side SCORM window will open, and the system will launch an additional course audit window.  All three windows will pop-up, and one may hide the other since they are independent of one another.  The audit window is shown below:

‎

The SCORM Client Logging Window is shown below:

The audit windows will immediately begin collecting data from the course.  You will see the window display a loading icon every two seconds during this data collection process.

‎SCORM Auditing Screens

There are four key areas to the auditing screen.

Status Information

Status information is found just under the toolbar.  This section reflects the course status, score, time, enrollment ID, and session ID information as processed by the LMS.  While data collection is active, these values will update every two seconds.  As you navigate the course, take quizzes, or finish the course, you should see these values change.  If the values do not change, there is likely a problem with the course communication to the LMS.

NOTE:  You can open/review the IMSMANIFEST file by clicking the View Course Manifest File link to the right of the title.

Client Side Audit

The client side audit window shows all the SCORM calls made from the course to the SCORM API.  As the SCORM course calls the LMSCommit() SCORM API functions, that data will be transmitted to the LMS and will be visible on the Communication detail audit.

Communication Detail Audit

The results of the SCORM data that are collected are listed on the Communication tab.  In general, the IEE 1433 XML SCORM communication will be displayed.  The communication is in XML format, so that it can be reviewed by a course developer.

The system will collect data every two seconds, which may cause the screen to flicker as the data is refreshed.  To review the data in more detail, you may wish to pause data collection so you can scroll through the communication results.  To pause data collection, click the Pause Collection button in the toolbar.  The system will stop automatic collection of data.  To resume collection again, click the Resume Collection button.

Other Transaction Data

Session Data Tab

The Session Data tab lists out the parsed results of the SCORM data that has been collected.  This information is shown in the format that the LMS consumes it, and is valuable for identifying and tracking specific SCORM elements within the LMS.  NOTE:  Navigating to this tab will automatically pause data collection.

Interactions Tab

If the course passes interaction information to the LMS, the results will be shown on the Interactions tab.  If available from the course, this data provides the question level detail to the LMS.  NOTE:  Navigating to this tab will automatically pause data collection.

Other Functions of the Audit

Exporting Data from the Screen

To export data from the Communication, Session Data, or Interactions tabs, click on the Export button in the toolbar.  NOTE:  The data on the Communication tab will export as a text file, whereas the other two will export into Excel format.

Re-Launch the Course

In some scenarios, it may be useful to close the course and re-open it (as a user would from their own learning plan).  Close the course window, and then click the Relaunch button in the toolbar.  The audit screen will close, and both the course and audit screen will launch.  This process can be very useful to test book marking or to ensure that scores/status are retained from session to session.

Dropping the Enrollment

You can use the Drop Enrollment button to drop the current enrollment.  NOTE:  Once the enrollment is dropped, data collection is no longer valid.  The system cannot collect data from a dropped enrollment.  You may wish to relaunch the course or close the audit window at this point.  Drop your enrollment in cases where you would like to start fresh with the course (with no prior book mark or score information) or if you’d simply like to clean the enrollment from your own training plan.

Close the Audit Window

To close the audit window, click the Close button on the toolbar.

Common Issues with SCORM Courses

Course Won't Start

1. Ensure the IMSMANIFEST.XML file is available in the root folder of the course.
2. If the provider/vendor requires specific information such as account codes or license codes, validate the presence of this data in the starting link.

Course Isn't Marking Completion

1. Ensure there is a flow of SCORM data in the Communication tab to the course.  If there is no data, this may indicate that the course is not SCORM compliant and is not communicating to the system.
2. If the SCORM communication is growing and changing as you navigate the course, but the course is not marking completion, you may need to ask the course provider the conditions under which the course will mark complete. (i.e., passing a quiz, navigating to the final page of the course, etc)

Course Isn't Tracking Score

1. Ensure there is a flow of SCORM data in the Communication tab to the course.  If there is no data, this may indicate that the course is not SCORM compliant and is not communicating to the system.
2. As you take the quiz portion of the course, review the audit screens to see if the data is changing.  Since most courses do not pass the score back to the LMS until after the quiz has been completed, you may need to completely finish the quiz.
3. Many quizzes offer a review or finish option that must be clicked to compute a score.  You may need to click some element within the course, or even close the course window, before seeing the score values in the LMS.

No Data in the SCORM Communication

1. Verify the settings in the LMS are configured properly.
2. Contact UL, or your course vendor, to certify the course under the ADL SCORM test suite.