SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model) is a set of standards from 2001 for packaging e-learning content so it runs in any conformant LMS and reports completion, score and time back to it.
What it is
A SCORM package is a zip containing content plus a manifest. At runtime it communicates with the LMS through a small JavaScript API, setting values like cmi.completion_status, cmi.success_status, cmi.score.raw and cmi.session_time.
SCORM 1.2 remains widely deployed despite SCORM 2004 having superseded it, largely because of platform inertia.
Why it matters
SCORM's data model is the reason so much learning measurement stops at completion. It was designed to answer 'did they finish and did they pass' and does that reliably — but the vocabulary contains no way to express attention.
A common confusion
cmi.session_time is often read as engagement. It is elapsed wall-clock time with the package open, so a module left in a background tab reports as sustained study.
Related
See also xapi (experience api), completion rate and time on task. See the full glossary for the rest, or the SCORM integration page for the wider context.
See where your content loses people
Book a walkthrough and we will show you the engagement data on your own content.