I have spent a large part of my career working with learning systems, data standards, and analytics. LMSs, LRSs, reporting tools, xAPI profiles, dashboards, you name it. One thing that has become increasingly clear over the years is this: learning data does not fail because of a lack of ideas. It fails because of weak infrastructure and poor interoperability.
That is why the launch of the Institute for Infrastructure and Interoperable Data in Learning (I2IDL) really matters. Not just to researchers or standards bodies, but to anyone actually building or operating learning ecosystems using xAPI and the Total Learning Architecture.
This article explores what I2IDL is, why it exists, and how it connects directly to xAPI and TLA in practical, real world terms.
What Is I2IDL?
The Institute for Infrastructure and Interoperable Data in Learning, or I2IDL, is an independent, non profit organisation focused on sustaining and advancing the infrastructure that underpins interoperable learning data systems.
That wording is important.
I2IDL is not about selling platforms.
It is not about building another LMS.
It is not about promoting a single vendor or product.
Its focus is on maintaining and stewarding the shared, open infrastructure that allows learning systems to exchange data reliably, consistently, and at scale.
This includes things like:
- Open source reference implementations
- Conformance and validation tools
- Shared schemas and data models
- Profiles and vocabularies
- Testing frameworks and certification approaches
In other words, the boring but absolutely essential plumbing that makes interoperability work in practice.
Why I2IDL Exists Now
To understand why I2IDL exists, you need to look at the history of the Total Learning Architecture.
TLA originated through the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative, with a strong focus on moving learning systems away from monolithic LMS models and towards flexible, data driven ecosystems. Over time, TLA introduced concepts like learning record stores, experience data, learner profiles, competency services, and trusted data exchange.
xAPI became a foundational part of that approach.
However, much of the early stewardship of TLA assets sat within government funded programs. As those programs evolved and funding models shifted, the community started asking a very reasonable question.
Who looks after this infrastructure long term?
That gap is what I2IDL is designed to fill. It provides an organisational home for the ongoing maintenance, governance, and evolution of the shared tools and assets that make TLA viable beyond any single project or funding cycle.
Where xAPI Fits Into This Story
If TLA is the architecture, then xAPI is the connective tissue.
xAPI allows us to record learning and performance experiences across systems, contexts, and environments. Not just courses and completions, but observations, simulations, workplace tasks, assessments, and real world performance.
But capturing xAPI statements is only the first step.
The real value of xAPI comes from:
- Consistent statement design through profiles
- Shared vocabularies that mean the same thing across systems
- Validation and conformance so data can be trusted
- Reusable patterns that reduce bespoke integrations
This is exactly where infrastructure matters.
Without shared tooling and governance, every xAPI implementation becomes slightly different. Semantics drift. Profiles fragment. Quality drops. Interoperability becomes theoretical rather than real.
I2IDL’s role in supporting profile infrastructure, conformance tooling, and shared reference implementations directly strengthens the xAPI ecosystem.
I2IDL and the Total Learning Architecture in Practice
One of the things I appreciate about I2IDL is that it is explicitly aligned with the principles of TLA, not just in theory, but in implementation.
TLA was never meant to be a single system. It is a blueprint for an ecosystem where different services do one job well and exchange data through open standards.
In that ecosystem:
- xAPI captures experience and performance data
- LRSs store and expose that data
- Profile servers define meaning and structure
- Identity and trust services manage access
- Analytics and decision systems sit on top
I2IDL supports the infrastructure that allows those components to exist independently but still work together.
This is a big shift away from LMS centric thinking. Instead of asking how everything fits into one platform, the question becomes how do we ensure data flows reliably between many tools.
Why This Matters to Implementers and Practitioners
From an Australian perspective, this work is especially relevant.
In VET, workforce training, compliance, and professional learning, we regularly deal with decentralised delivery models. Learning happens on the job, in simulations, in workplaces, in communities, and across multiple systems.
We already know that trying to force all of that into a single LMS does not work.
xAPI gives us a way to capture those experiences.
TLA gives us a way to design ecosystems around them.
I2IDL gives us confidence that the underlying infrastructure is being cared for.
For people building tools, integrating systems, or advising organisations, this means:
- More stable foundations for xAPI implementations
- Less reinvention of common components
- Greater confidence in data quality and interoperability
- A clearer path from experimentation to production scale
It also creates opportunities for collaboration between vendors, institutions, and researchers without locking anyone into proprietary models.
Looking Ahead
If you care about learning data beyond course completions, if you believe that performance evidence matters, and if you are serious about interoperability rather than vendor lock in, then I2IDL is worth paying attention to.
It represents a maturation of the learning data ecosystem. A move from innovation driven by passion projects to infrastructure supported by governance, community, and long term thinking.
xAPI and TLA have always been about enabling better learning ecosystems. I2IDL helps ensure those ecosystems have solid foundations to stand on.
Get involved, signup to their newsletter and checkout the website. The xAPI Collective will also be introducing I2IDL as it grows as well