IMS Europe
European organizations have provided strong leadership in IMS throughout the years. Today there are over 70 members of IMS Europe across the continent. Question and Test Interoperability (QTI) and Learning Design have strong name recognition throughout Europe. College voor Toetsen en Examens (CvTE) in the Netherlands, along with several Dutch suppliers, have created a Dutch Exam Profile of QTI that is leading the way for assessment in Europe. SURF and Kennisnet in the Netherlands have been instrumental in supporting the evolution and adoption of IMS standards. Under the leadership of JISC and the HED sector, the United Kingdom has provided leadership in developing and deploying Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI), QTI, Learning Information Services, and several other IMS standards. IMS Global is also a signatory to the Groningen Declaration on the future of digital student data portability.
- To ensure that the needs and interests of European members are met in IMS specifications by documenting local functional requirements and use cases and ensuring active representation on relevant Working Groups;
- To increase awareness and adoption of IMS standards in Europe by holding an annual IMS Summit on European soil, producing information materials specifically targeting the European educational marketplace, participating and presenting about IMS on relevant European conferences, as well as establishing long-term partnerships with European institutions that are engaged in the development of ed-tech protocols and standards. View details and the presentations from IMS Europe Summit 2020 held online in November 2020.
In November 2018, IMS announced a collaborative agreement with EUNIS (European University Information Systems)—the association of information technology services in European higher education and research—to promote the existence of high-quality infrastructures and services to support the activities of education and research institutions in Europe. EUNIS and IMS will become members of each other’s organization, and a EUNIS representative will receive a seat on the IMS Europe Board.
The European Commission published ESCO use cases on its website including alignment to Open Badges. ESCO is the multilingual classification of European Skills, Competences, Qualifications, and Occupations—relevant for the EU labour market and education and training.
View the ESCO use cases.
The interplay of ESCO and Open Badges was explored during a panel discussion at the IMS Europe Summit in Barcelona (October 2019). View the video.
IMS Contributing Members who are located in Europe and/or have a substantial part of their activity in Europe are eligible to become part of the IMS Europe Board. If you are interested in participating, please contact Gill Ferrell, IMS Europe Program Director.
Overview of Learning Tools Interoperability in Dutch
IMS Japan Society
In April 2016, IMS Global announced the formation of the IMS Japan Society (“IMS Japan” or "IMS-JS") as a non-profit organization. Today there are over 30 organizations that have joined IMS-JS. IMS-JS provides leadership in the regional e-learning, publishing, and education sectors to further the development and adoption of IMS open standards. IMS-JS is actively collaborating with IMS Global to provide support to Japanese organizations and individuals seeking to benefit from the open ecosystem of interoperable products enabled by IMS standards. This collaboration includes a certification program for individuals in the use of IMS standards, IMS-JS workgroups, bootcamps, and annual meetings in Tokyo and elsewhere. Learn more.
View the IMS Japan Society website.
IMS MENA (Middle East and North Africa)
In February 2022, IMS and the National eLearning Center (NELC) of Saudi Arabia today signed a memorandum of understanding to partner on the launch of IMS MENA. IMS MENA will be managed by NELC with full support from IMS Global for the purpose of accelerating an interoperable edtech ecosystem to achieve high-quality learning experiences in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East and North Africa region. Read the press release.
IMS in Australia and New Zealand
Australia has been a leader in IMS standards for many years through the Australian Department of Education. In prior years, members from Australia were active participants in developing IMS standards. Unfortunately, this leadership has lapsed as the National Schools Interoperability Program (NSIP) has taken over educational standards in Australia. In 2019, the New South Wales Department of Education joined IMS as a Contributing Member and memberships continue to grow among leading suppliers. However, IMS standards, including Content Packaging, LTI, and QTI are still used widely in Australia. New Zealand has been an active contributor to IMS standards development and adoption for many years. The New Zealand Ministry of Education is currently an IMS Contributing Member.
IMS Korea
In April 2007, IMS Global and KERIS (Korea Education and Research Information Service) signed a memorandum of understanding to form IMS Korea. IMS Korea provides regional leadership of the development and adoption of IMS standards, as well as formal liaison with the IMS Global community. IMS Korea has been involved in many IMS technical areas including Content Packaging, Common Cartridge, Learning Tools Interoperability, Question and Test Interoperability, Access for All, and Caliper Analytics.
