LMS help for Storyline 360

Hello Jon,

I'm glad to hear that you and your students are loving Storyline 360! I understand that Google Classroom is not saving your student's progress.

I'm unfamiliar with that platform, but from what I have researched, it sounds like Google Classroom does not support saving learners' progress. I'd recommend trying Reach 360 to publish your courses and see if that works for you. Reach 360 is fully compatible with Storyline.

Let me know how it goes, and I'll be more than happy to assist further.

Hi Eric,

From what I understand Reach 360 is an added expense over our Articulate 360 subscription and the lowest cost, which is more than my district can afford, only allows for 360 students and I have over 500.  Is that correct or am I reading it incorrectly?

Thank You

@Jon O'Callaghan

Hi Jon

Can I ask what kind of information you are looking to store for your students? Is it quiz scores, answers to assignment questions? Or is it just what modules they have completed?

I, also, am not familiar with Google Classroom but most LMS's will track module completion. There are a number of ways of storing other types of information. Many do involve extra costs but there are also some things you can achieve which are free or involve minimal costs. It depends what you need.

The main functions of an LMS are:

(a) 'bookmarking' - allowing the learner to pick up a course or module where they left off

(b) completion tracking - signalling to the learner (and the tutor) which courses/lessons/modules have been completed

(c) Recording test scores - storing the pass/fail status and or quiz or assignment scores of learners for each module

Still the most common standard used for passing information from the eLearning to the LMS is SCORM - even though this is a very old (and seriously limited) protocol.

Increasingly, institutions are using the more modern xAPI protocol which was designed as a replacement for SCORM. xAPI allows the developer to define pretty much any kind of information they want to store and then add code that will send that information to the LMS - or, more accurately, to an LRS (Learning Record Store). Many LMS's now have an in-built LRS to accommodate xAPI - BUT it is also possible to purchase access to a separate LRS.

It sounds as though the best route to meet your needs would be to explore the less expensive LRS options (there is only one open source "FREE" one I know of - but it's a WordPress plug-in)

OTHER Options 

You could add JavaScript code to your Storyline modules that would store information in Google Docs (a Google sheet, for example) - or in a Microsoft Teams spreadsheet (Excel).

You could add JavaScript to your Storyline modules that added learner input to a pdf file that the learner could download at the end of a module.

...I'm sure there are more options others can suggest. Sorry this answer was a bit long - hope it helps?

Regards

Hi @Jon O'Callaghan

There are two apects to 'bookmarking' :

(a) being able to 'resume' a course module if the learner takes a break and then returns to that module at a later time and 

(b) being able to track which modules have been completed in the course (particularly if the course modules are non-linear)

Since you are using Storyline (a) is taken care of. Even if not running under an LMS, Storyline will store the position and state of variables as the learner progresses through the course and you can specify, through course settings, whether you want the learner to be able to 'resume' or 'restart' the course when they return to it.

Every LMS will have the capability to 'track' completion of modules and indicate to the learner (and the tutor) which modules/lessons and which courses have been completed...

Dynamic allocation of modules

...But what you are asking for are 'dynamic learning plans' this is the ability to dynamically add modules to a learner's learning plan based on a learner's progress, performance, or specific learning needs. Not all LMS's will offer this capability, but many do.

Moodle - may not be for the feint-hearted but, using Moodle’s conditional activities and custom scripting, courses or modules can be automatically added to a learner's plan based on predefined triggers or conditions.

TalentLMS, SAP Litmos, LearnUpon, and Totara Learn all (I believe) have the ability to add modules automatically to a learner's learning plan based on their progress or performance in specific courses, activities or quizzes. (specific triggers will vary by LMS).

Cornerstone OnDemand and Docebo have dynamic learning plans and also incorporate AI to recommend courses and modules dynamically, based on learner behavior and preferences.

So there are a lot of LMS's that can do what you are seeking The Key features to look for are:

• Conditional Logic: Look for an LMS that supports conditional logic, where specific actions or progress metrics trigger the addition of new modules.
• Competency-Based Learning: Some LMS platforms allow you to link modules to competencies, automatically assigning modules as learners achieve or fail to achieve certain competencies.
• AI and Machine Learning: Advanced LMS platforms use AI to predict and recommend the next best module based on learner behavior, tailoring the learning experience dynamically.
• APIs and Integrations: If you need a highly customised solution, an LMS with strong API support may allow for custom scripting to dynamically adjust learning plans.

MY RECOMMENDATION (and here I have to own up to having an affiliate agreement with LearnDash - which I also use for my own site)

If cost is a major concern then using a WordPress site can be a good option and LearnDash is a pretty good (and not expensive) LMS.

Although LearnDash doesn't natively support SCORM or xAPI - there are plug-ins available that can add this functionality and, although I have never used it, there is a Wordpress plug-in called Uncanny Automator and an Uncanny LearnDash Toolkit Pro which allow you to set up triggers (like course completion, quiz results, or user actions) that automatically enroll learners in new courses or modules.

This also includes the capability to create conditional logic-based learning paths. For example, if a learner fails a quiz, they could automatically be enrolled in a remedial course or if they complete a course with high marks, they could be assigned a more advanced module.

Which I think is what you are looking for.

I'm sure other writers will have other preferences for a suitable LMS and hopefully some may have experience with dynamic learning paths using the LMS's I have listed.