IMS Learning Design was a specification for a metalanguage which enables the modelling of learning processes. The specification was maintained by IMS Global Learning Consortium. There has been no further work on this specification since 2003, rendering this specification as abandoned. The Larcana Declaration on Learning Design in 2012 was an attempt provide a new theoretical foundation for the field of Learning Design. However, not further work has been released since.
IMS Learning Design was a metalanguage for describing learning designs that claims to be pedagogically neutral. The specification can be likened to a stage-play:
People act in different roles
Roles work towards specific objectives by performing learning and/or support activities
Activities are conducted within an environmentconsisting of learning objects and services
IMS LD is made up of three levels, with each level extending and incorporating the previous:
The specification was a method for describing teaching strategies and educational goals. The language is represented in XML which makes it machine readable; an IMS LD-aware tool is able to "play" a unit of learning. After its release, IMS LD had a moderately active community -mostly in Europe, carrying out a wide range of research and experimentation. However, none of these research projects rendered a practical implementation that could be used at scale.
The UniversityCarlos III of Madrid had developed an IMS LD player into the.LRN Learning platform. It is the first player that has been built completely embedded into an LMS. This player is open source and available from CVS.. The project was abandoned.
Implementation – authoring and export
The Reload editor can be used to author learning designs in IMS LD format.
The Graphical Learning Modeller provides an intuitive graphical editing interface that abstracts from the technicalities of the IMS LD specification.
OpenGLM is an extension of Graphical Learning Modeller, enabling users to retrieve, publish and share resources and learning designs in an open repository.
LAMS : LAMS used to export learning designs in IMS Learning Design Level C format, but this was dropped in version 2.5.
Moodle had planned to changed its current course export format to follow the IMS Learning Design specification in Moodle v2.0 according to the Moodle roadmap.. However, this feature never come into fruition.
