xAPI, also called Tin Can API, is a specification for recording learning experiences as actor–verb–object statements sent to a Learning Record Store. It succeeds SCORM and can describe experiences that happen outside a browser or LMS.
What it is
A statement takes the form 'Ross experienced module-3-slide-14', with optional context, result and extension data. Statements go to an LRS, which stores and serves them.
The format is deliberately open, which is both its strength and its practical weakness: it can express nearly anything, so consistency depends entirely on whoever designs the vocabulary.
Why it matters
xAPI is the only mainstream standard capable of carrying granular engagement data. SCORM cannot express 'learner disengaged at section 4'; xAPI can, using result extensions.
A common confusion
xAPI is a transport format, not a measurement strategy. Adopting it does not by itself produce better data — most content still emits statements only at coarse checkpoints.
Related
See also scorm, learning record store (lrs) and content effectiveness. See the full glossary for the rest, or the xAPI integration page for the wider context.
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