Interoperability Glossary

Glossary of K-12 Interoperability: Data Standards, Policy, and Technical Frameworks

The Standards Glossary is an overview of different standards in the K-12 market, described below with resource type, organization, use case, and description. The glossary is a way to consolidate the information in the space for easy visual access, and to link you to the right place so you can learn more if one seems right for you. For more resources, visit our website or email us.

The descriptions are derived from the descriptions listed on the organization's respective websites or gathered directly from them. If any inaccuracies are discovered in the descriptions below, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We are happy to correct organization descriptions as directed by a representative from the organization.

Download the Glossary
Download the Glossary

Glossary Organization Structure

Each resource in the Interoperability Glossary includes the resource type, specific use cases and/or domains, and a definition.

  • Resource Type:

    • Definition: Identifies the format and authority of a tool, document, or standard within the glossary. It distinguishes whether a resource is a set of technical rules, a piece of software, or a legal requirement.

    • Examples: Technical Specification (the rules), Data Standard (the format), Federal Regulation (the law), and Open Source Tools (the software)

  • Use Case/Domains

    • Definition: The educational or administrative sector problem that the standard solves. The type of data being handled or the workflow that's being supported.

    • Examples: Rostering (managing class lists), Accessibility (supporting diverse learners), Assessment (testing and results), and Analytics (interpreting learning data).

  • Description

    • Definition: Outlines the purpose, history, and core function of the standard. It provides the "fine print" necessary to understand how the resource facilitates data exchange between different systems.

    • Examples: Descriptions include details such as whether a standard is a "legacy" system (like AICC) or "community-driven" (like the a11y Project), and offer a plain-language explanation of its role in the digital ecosystem.

Resource Types

The resources included in the Glossary include the following resource types:

  • Best Practices: A set of recommended methods or techniques that have consistently shown results superior to those achieved with other means.

  • Certification Framework: A structured process used by third-party organizations to verify and officially recognize that a product or service meets specific interoperability standards.

  • Data Exchange System: The technical infrastructure and protocols that enable the actual transfer of information between two or more software applications.

  • Data Framework: A high-level structure that defines how data is managed, including the policies and architecture for data collection and usage.

  • Data Privacy Framework: A set of rules and technical requirements designed to protect student information and ensure compliance with privacy laws during data handling.

  • Data Standard: A set of agreed-upon rules for how data is structured and defined, ensuring that different systems speak the same language.

  • Educational Framework: A conceptual structure that organizes learning goals, pedagogical approaches, and outcomes to guide the implementation of technology in schools.

  • Federal Regulation: Legally binding rules issued by U.S. agencies (like the Department of Education) to enforce federal laws.

  • Federal Standard: A specific technical or operational requirement mandated at the national level to ensure consistency across state lines.

  • Free Hosted Tool or Service: An application or platform provided at no cost to the user that is managed and maintained on the provider’s servers.

  • Industry Commitment: A voluntary pledge or agreement by EdTech vendors to adhere to specific principles, such as transparency or interoperability.

  • Legal Framework: The system of laws and regulations that provide the statutory basis for data governance and student rights.

  • Open Source Tools: Software with source code that is made freely available for anyone to inspect, modify, and enhance.

  • Policy Framework: A logical structure of guidelines and procedures that helps organizations make consistent decisions regarding data and technology.

  • State Regulation: Rules and requirements established by state-level government bodies that govern how local education agencies manage data.

  • Technical Framework: A detailed architectural outline that describes the components and interactions required to build an interoperable system.

  • Technical Specification: A rigorous, detailed document that provides the exact requirements for how a specific piece of software must be built.

  • Technical Standards Organization: A professional body dedicated to developing and maintaining the standards used in a specific industry.

1EdTech Consortium Digital Credentials Portfolio of Standards:
Resource Type: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech / DCC
Use Case/Domains: Credentials
Description: Infrastructure for issuing, storing, displaying, and verifying digital academic credentials using open standards.

1EdTech Consortium Student Learning Data Model (SLDM):
Resource Type: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Analytics, Student Success
Description: Data model supporting early warning systems and student success interventions through standardized data exchange.

5 EdTech Quality Indicators:
Resource Type: Best Practices
Organization: 1EdTech, CAST, CoSN, Digital Promise, InnovateEDU, ISTE, and SETDA
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility, Compliance, Interoperability, Security
Description: A set of indicators designed to help school districts and vendors ensure that EdTech products are safe, evidence-based, inclusive, usable, and interoperable.

a11y Project:
Resource Type: Open Source Tools
Organization: Open Source Community
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: A community-driven effort to make web accessibility easier.

Academic Benchmarks (AB Connect)
Resource Type: Technical Specification
Organization: Instructure
Use Case/Domains: Academic Standards
Description: API-based service providing access to standards data from all 50 states and major frameworks for curriculum alignment.

Accessible Assessments Initiative
Resource Type: Technical Framework
Organization: National Center on Educational Outcomes
Use Case/Domains: Assessment, Accessibility
Description: Guidelines and standards for creating accessible large-scale assessments for students with disabilities.

Accessible Portable Item Protocol® (APIP®)
Resource Type: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility, Assessment
Description: Technical standard for digital interchange of assessment content with accessibility delivery options. Subset of QTI, being integrated into QTI 3.

Achievement Standards Network (ASN)
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: Desire2Learn / JES & Co.
Use Case/Domains: Academic Standards
Description: Repository and namespace for educational achievement standards enabling machine-readable standards alignment.

Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Initiative
Resource Type: Technical Standards
Organization: Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Initiative
Use Case/Domains: Analytics, Content, Workforce
Description: A Department of Defense program that developed SCORM and the xAPI (Experience API). xAPI is critical for workforce training as it tracks learning experiences across diverse environments, both online and offline.

AICC (Aviation Industry CBT Committee)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: AICC (legacy)
Use Case/Domains: Content
Description: Legacy e-learning standard preceding SCORM. Some K-12 systems still support AICC for backward compatibility.

American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: As the voice of the U.S. standards and conformity assessment system, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) empowers its members and constituents to strengthen the U.S. marketplace position in the global economy while helping to assure the safety and health of consumers and the protection of the environment. ANSI is the sole U.S. representative of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and, as a founding member of ISO, plays an active role in its governance and in U.S. implementations of international standards. ANSI also has U.S.-specific standards, such as encoding of character sets.

Caliper Analytics (Caliper®)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization:1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Analytics, Usage
Description: Enables institutions to collect learning data from digital resources to understand better and visualize learning activity and product usage data, and present this information to students, instructors, and advisors in meaningful ways.

CEDS Data Warehouse Model
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: A star-schema data model based on Kimball methodology that organizes CEDS elements for efficient reporting, trend analysis, and dashboards.

CEDS Integrated Data Models (NDS/IDS)
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: A logical data model (Normalized Data Schema) that can be a physical implementation (Integrated Data Store) supporting data across the P20W spectrum at a granular / unit level.

Central Authentication Service (CAS)
Resource: Open Source Tools
Organization: Apereo
Use Case/Domains: Identity, Access Management
Description: Single sign-on solution supporting multiple different authentication mechanisms.

ClassLink Roster Server
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: ClassLink
Use Case/Domains: Rostering, Identity
Description: OneRoster-compatible rostering service with automated provisioning for educational applications and SSO.

Clever Data Standards
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Clever Inc.
Use Case/Domains: Rostering, Identity
Description: Widely-adopted rostering API connecting SIS data with educational applications, supporting millions of students.

cmi5
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative (ADL)
Use Case/Domains: Content, Analytics
Description: xAPI profile designed as SCORM successor, combining xAPI flexibility with LMS-style launch and tracking capabilities.

Common Cartridge® (CC®)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Content
Description: Provides a way to package and exchange learning content and assessments. Common Cartridges can contain the actual content or links to it via Learning Tool Interoperability, all with metadata and curriculum standards metadata that describe the content. Cartridges can be developed once and loaded into multiple learning environments.

Common Education Data Standards (CEDS)
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: A field-driven, federally supported education data standard and management initiative that streamlines the understanding and use of data across P-20W institutions and sectors. Through its Open Source Community (OSC), CEDS enables stakeholders to collaboratively develop and maintain shared resources, including CEDS Elements, the CEDS Ontology and JSON-LD schema, the CEDS Integrated Data Store, the CEDS Data Warehouse, and exchangeable code available through the CEDS open source repositories.

Competencies and Academic Standards Exchange (CASE)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Academic Standards
Description: Provides educators a faster and more reliable way to align and realign content to learning standards, find and share content from different sources, and support the transition to standards-based and competency-based learning.

Comprehensive Learner Record Standard (CLR)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Credentials
Description: Supports traditional academic programs, co-curricular and competency-based education, as well as employer-based learning and development, in any domain where it’s important to capture and communicate a learner’s and worker’s achievements in verifiable digital form.

COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act)
Resource: Federal Regulation
Organization: Federal Trade Commission
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Compliance
Description: Federal law protecting children under 13 online, requiring parental consent for data collection by websites and apps.

CoSN Trusted Learning Environment (TLE)
Resource: Certification Framework
Organization: Consortium for School Networking
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Security
Description: Seal program recognizing school systems demonstrating comprehensive student data privacy practices.

Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL)
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: Credential Engine
Use Case/Domains: Credentials, Workforce
Description: Linked open data schema for describing credentials, competencies, and pathways. Enables credential transparency in education-to-workforce transitions.

DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: DAISY Consortium
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility, Content
Description: Standard for accessible multimedia documents, particularly for students with print disabilities.

Data Quality Campaign Standards
Resource: Policy Framework
Organization: Data Quality Campaign
Use Case/Domains: Data Governance
Description: Framework of 10 essential elements for effective education data systems including linking and access policies.

Dublin Core Metadata
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Dublin Core Metadata Initiative
Use Case/Domains: Content, Metadata
Description: Simple, standardized metadata vocabulary for describing digital resources. The foundation for many educational metadata standards.

Ed-Fi API
Resource Type: Open Source Tools
Organization: Ed-Fi Alliance
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains
Description: An Ed-Fi API application combines REST API principles with the Ed-Fi Data Standard to create a platform for the exchange of K-12 educational data. It hosts one or more of the Ed-Fi Alliance's API Specifications (e.g. Resource API, Assessment API, Student API), providing a single application that supports diverse needs across interoperability and data collection use cases. The Ed-Fi ODS/API and its successor, the Ed-Fi Data Management Service (DMS), are the official software implementations from the Ed-Fi Alliance.

Ed-Fi Assessment API
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Ed-Fi Alliance
Use Case/Domains: Assessment
Description: API specification for the exchange of assessment metadata and student assessment results. This is a subset of the Ed-Fi Resources API.

Ed-Fi Data Standard
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: Ed-Fi Alliance
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains
Description: The Ed-Fi Data Standard creates a common language for moving data from one system to another. Important student information can be brought together clearly in one place, providing a complete view of each student's progress. The Data Standard is developed in collaboration with the Ed-Fi Community (state agencies, service centers, edtech vendors). It is rooted in real-world use cases and aligned with CEDS, and serves as the basis for generating the Ed-Fi Resources API specification.

Ed-Fi Resources API
Resource Type: Technical Specification
Organization: Ed-Fi Alliance
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains
Description: API specification covering the entire set of endpoints that support the Ed-Fi Data Standard for a given version.

Ed-Fi Student API
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Ed-Fi Alliance
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains
Description: API specification for the exchange of core student information typically managed by a student information system. This is a subset of the Ed-Fi Resources API.

EDEN (Education Data Exchange Network)
Resource Type: Data Exchange System
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains, Reporting
Description: Portal for states to submit education data to federal government using standardized submission protocols.

EDFacts Data Standards
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains, Reporting
Description: Federal initiative collecting K-12 performance data from state education agencies using standardized file specifications.

EdTech Index
Resource: Free Hosted Tool or Service
Organization: ISTE+ASCD
Use Case/Domains: Interoperability, Compliance, Privacy, Accessibility, Student Success
Description: Hosted by ISTE+ASCD, the EdTech Index categorizes products based on the five quality indicators and validations from partner organizations, including Project Unicorn.

EDUPUB®
Resource: Free Hosted Tool or Service
Organization: 1EdTech, International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF), World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: Establishes a globally interoperable, accessible, open ecosystem for e-Textbooks and other Digital Learning Materials via EPUB 3, Educational Sector Standards, and the Open Web Platform.

EPUB
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF)
Use Case/Domains: Content
Description: Used for publishing content that resembles text or books. The current EPub standard (3.1) uses HTML5 and supports JavaScript.

EPUB Accessibility 1.0
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: W3C / IDPF
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility, Content
Description: Specification defining accessibility conformance requirements for EPUB publications including discoverability and reading systems.

European Digital Credentials for Learning
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: European Commission
Use Case/Domains: Credentials
Description: Framework for issuing digitally-signed credentials across European education systems, influencing global credential standards.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
Resource: Federal Regulation
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Compliance
Description: Federal law protecting the privacy of student education records, giving parents rights regarding their children's records.

FIDO2/WebAuthn
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: FIDO Alliance / W3C
Use Case/Domains: Identity Access Management
Description: Passwordless authentication standard using biometrics or security keys. Enhances student and staff account security in educational environments.

GraphQL
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: GraphQL Foundation
Use Case/Domains: Data Exchange, APIs
Description: Query language for APIs providing efficient, flexible data retrieval. Emerging in educational platforms for complex queries.

H5P
Resource: Open Source Tools
Organization: Open Source Community
Use Case/Domains: Content
Description: Open source toolkit for creating, modifying, and sharing content and assessments using HTML5.

HL7 FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Health Level Seven International
Use Case/Domains: Student Health, Special Education
Description: Modern healthcare interoperability standard increasingly used for school health records and related student services.

HR Open Standards Consortium
Resource: Technical Standards
Organization: HR Open Standards Consortium
Use Case/Domains: Workforce, Credentials, Data Exchange
Description: Develops public-private open standards for HR technology, including employment and earnings records, to help employers and government agencies share data more efficiently.

HTML5
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Content
Description: Latest evolution of HTML standard with new elements, attributes, behaviors, and technologies for web applications.

IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) Data Standards
Resource: Federal Regulation
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: Special Education
Description: Data requirements for special education reporting including Child Count, Exiting, Discipline, and Educational Environments.

IEEE Learning Object Metadata (LOM)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: IEEE LTSC
Use Case/Domains: Content, Metadata
Description: Standard for describing learning objects to facilitate search, evaluation, acquisition, and use of learning resources.

IEEE P2881 Learning Transcript
Resource: Learning Transcript
Organization: Technical Specification
Use Case/Domains: IEEECredentials, Student Records
Description: Standard format for digital learning transcripts capturing formal and informal learning achievements across the lifespan.

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Resource: Technical Standards Organization
Organization: IEEE
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: The world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity. Familiar technology standards such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi were developed through IEEE. The IEEE Education Society and Learning Technology Standards Committee develops best-practice guides and standards for education and training.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: The ISO develops and publishes International Standards. Some ISO standards commonly used by U.S. education agencies are reflected in CEDS, such as ISO country and language codes.

ISTE Seal
Resource: Certification Framework
Organization: ISTE+ASCD
Use Case/Domains: Academic Standards, Competencies, Digital Literacy, Student Success, Accessibility
Description: The framework used to evaluate products for the ISTE Seal.

ISTE Standards
Resource: Educational Framework
Organization: ISTE+ASCD
Use Case/Domains: Academic Standards, Digital Literacy
Description: Widely-adopted standards for digital age learning, teaching, and leading in K-12 education.

JSON-LD (JSON for Linked Data)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Data Exchange
Description: Method of encoding linked data using JSON, increasingly used for educational data interoperability and CEDS.

Learner and Employment Records (LER)
Resource: Technical Framework
Organization: T3 Innovation Network
Use Case/Domains: Credentials, Workforce
Description: Digital wallet approach for learners to own and share verified credentials and skills with employers.

Learning Record Store (LRS) Standards
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative
Use Case/Domains: Analytics
Description: Standards for systems storing learning records generated by xAPI, enabling analytics across learning experiences.

Learning Resource Metadata Innovation (LRMI)
Resource: Open Source Tool
Organization: Dublin Core Metadata Initiative
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: The LRMI specification is a collection of classes and properties for the markup and description of educational resources. The specification builds on the extensive vocabulary provided by Schema.org and other standards. LRMI terms not included in Schema.org may be used to augment and enrich Schema.org markup.

Learning Technologies Standards Committee (LTSC)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Use Case/Domains: Several
Description: The LTSC is chartered by the IEEE Computer Society Standards Activity Board to develop internationally accredited technical recommended standards, practices, and guides for learning technology.

Learning Tools Interoperability® (LTI®)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization:1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Assessment, Content, Identity Access Management, Rostering
Description: A standard way to securely connect and integrate learning tools with learning platforms, providing information about the user and the details of the system they are coming from.

Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
Use Case/Domains: Identity Access Management
Description: A mature, flexible, and well-supported standards-based mechanism for interacting with directory servers. It's often used for authentication and storing information about users, groups, and applications. Still, an LDAP directory server is a fairly general-purpose data store and can be used in a wide variety of applications.

LTI Advantage®
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization:1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Assessment, Content, Identity Access Management, Rostering
Description: A package of extensions that build on the core LTI standard (v1.3) to add new features that enable deeper integration of any tool with any LMS. The LTI Advantage® extensions are Names and Role Provisioning Services, Deep Linking, and Assignment and Grade Services.

MathML (Mathematical Markup Language)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Content, Accessibility
Description: XML application for describing mathematical notation, essential for accessible STEM content in education.

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Race/Ethnicity Standards
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: NCES
Use Case/Domains: Demographics
Description: Federal standards for collecting and reporting race and ethnicity data in education, aligned with OMB requirements.

National Data Privacy Agreement (NDPA)
Resource: Legal Framework
Organization: Student Data Privacy Consortium
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Compliance
Description: Standardized contract terms for student data privacy between schools and technology providers, reducing legal complexity.

National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS)
Resource: Federal Standard
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility, Content
Description: Technical standard for source files of K-12 textbooks to produce accessible formats for students with disabilities.

NCES IPEDS Standards
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: National Center for Education Statistics
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains, Reporting
Description: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System standards for institutional reporting to federal government.

OAuth 2.0
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
Use Case/Domains: Identity Access Management
Description: Industry-standard protocol for authorization with specific flows for web, desktop, and mobile applications.

OData (Open Data Protocol)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: OASIS
Use Case/Domains: Data Exchange, APIs
Description: Standard for building and consuming RESTful APIs, used by some educational data systems for standardized queries.

oEmbed
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Open Source Community
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: A format that allows content from a specific URL to be embedded on third-party sites. The oEmbed API allows end users to easily specify content when they post a link to the resource.

OneRoster®
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization:1 EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Assessment, Content, Rostering
Description: Allows for the exchange of roster data between LMS and SIS and learning tools. The data exchanged can include information about students, teachers, classes, grades, and course materials.

Open Badges®
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Credentials
Description: A method for packaging information about accomplishments, embedding it into portable image files as digital badges, and establishing resources for its validation and verification.

Open Skills Network Standards
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: Open Skills Network
Use Case/Domains: Workforce, Skills
Description: Standards for describing, organizing, and matching skills across education and employment ecosystems.

OpenID Connect (OIDC)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: OpenID Foundation
Use Case/Domains: Identity Access Management
Description: Modern authentication layer built on OAuth 2.0 enabling single sign-on and identity verification across applications. Increasingly adopted in K-12 for secure authentication.

PARCC Assessment Standards
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: PARCC (legacy)
Use Case/Domains: Assessment
Description: Data specifications from Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, now integrated into state systems.

PDF/UA (Universal Accessibility)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: ISO
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility, Content
Description: ISO standard for accessible PDF documents, ensuring assistive technologies can reliably access content.

PESC (Postsecondary Electronic Standards)
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: PESC
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains, Transcripts
Description: Standards for electronic data exchange in postsecondary education including transcripts, financial aid, and admissions.

PESC XML Standards
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: PESC
Use Case/Domains: Transcripts, Student Records
Description: XML schemas for electronic transcripts and student records enabling seamless K-12 to postsecondary transitions.

Postsecondary Electronic Standards Council (PESC)
Resource: Technical Standards Organization
Organization: Postsecondary Electronic Standards Council (PESC)
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains, Transcripts, Student Records
Description: Focuses on the exchange of postsecondary data, particularly high school and college transcripts, using standardized formats like XML and JSON.

Project Unicorn
Resource: Best Practices
Organization: Project Unicorn
Use Case/Domains: Interoperability
Description: Educational advocacy initiative promoting secure, controlled interchange of data and total cost of ownership awareness.

Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA)
Resource: Federal Regulation
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Compliance
Description: Federal law gives parents specific rights regarding the administration of student surveys, analyses, or evaluations that concern eight protected areas of private information.

Question and Test Interoperability® (QTI®)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Assessment, Content
Description: Provides a full open standards solution for all kinds of assessment functions, including question item authoring, test delivery, scoring, results analysis, reporting, and content and results exchange.

Rich Skills Descriptor (RSD)
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: Open Skills Network
Use Case/Domains: Skills, Competencies
Description: Format for describing skills with contextual information enabling better matching between education and employment.

Schema.org
Resource: Free Hosted Tool or Service
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: Schema.org is a collaborative, community activity with a mission to create, maintain, and promote schemas for structured data on the Internet, on web pages, in email messages, and beyond.

SCIM (System for Cross-domain Identity Management)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: IETF
Use Case/Domains: Identity, Rostering
Description: Standard for automating user identity information exchange between identity domains and IT systems.

SCORM
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative (ADL)
Use Case/Domains: Assessment, Content, Usage
Description: A set of technical standards for e-learning software. SCORM is the de facto industry standard for e-learning interoperability. Its primary purpose is to govern how online learning content and Learning Management Systems (LMSs) communicate. It also defines content structure, rules, and metadata, allowing content authoring tools to create online learning content that works the same way across any LMS.

Section 508
Resource: Federal Regulation
Organization: U.S. Government
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: Enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology, make available new opportunities for people with disabilities, and encourage the development of technologies to help achieve these goals. The law applies to all Federal agencies when they develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology. Under Section 508 (29 U.S.C. § 794d), agencies must give employees with disabilities and members of the public access to information.

Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: OASIS
Use Case/Domains: Identity Access Management
Description: An XML-based framework for communicating user authentication, entitlement, and attribute information. SAML allows business entities to make assertions about a subject's identity, attributes, and entitlements to other entities, such as a partner company or another enterprise application.

Shibboleth
Resource: Open Source Tools
Organization: Shibboleth Consortium
Use Case/Domains: Identity Access Management
Description: An open-source project that provides Single Sign-On capabilities and allows sites to make informed authorization decisions for individual access of protected online resources in a privacy-preserving manner.

SIF®(Schools Interoperability Framework®) Specification
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community
Use Case/Domains: K12 Data Domains
Description: The SIF data model (North America) served as the origins of the CEDS data model with the 3.x and higher version supporting CEDS data and transport; the complete SIF Specification includes the most complete K12 data model and information about transport and messaging functionality used to move information between systems.

SIF® (Schools Interoperability Framework®) Infrastructure Specification
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community
Use Case/Domains: Global Education Data Movement
Description: A global standard designed to support any or multiple data models, high-performance needs, scalability requirements, and privacy. The SIF Infrastructure is designed to support and bridge between three major architectural designs: direct, brokered, and data hub.

Smarter Balanced Assessment Data Standards
Resource: Data Standard
Organization: Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium
Use Case/Domains: Assessment
Description: Data standards for state assessment systems enabling comparability of results across consortium member states.

SOPIPA (Student Online Personal Information Protection Act)
Resource: State Regulation
Organization: California Legislature
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Compliance
Description: California law prohibiting use of student data for advertising and requiring data security. Model for other states.

State Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) Standards
Resource: Data Framework
Organization: U.S. Department of Education
Use Case/Domains: P-20W Data Domains
Description: Framework and standards for state systems tracking student data from pre-K through workforce.

Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC)
Resource: Data Privacy Framework
Organization: A4L Community
Use Case/Domains: Privacy, Compliance
Description: National collaborative addressing student data privacy through standardized agreements, resources, and best practices for schools and vendors.

T3 Innovation Network Standards
Resource: Technical Framework
Organization: U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
Use Case/Domains: Workforce, Credentials
Description: Open standards ecosystem connecting education credentials with workforce needs through learning and employment records.

The Experience API (xAPI)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative (ADL)
Use Case/Domains: Analytics
Description: A specification for learning technology that makes it possible to collect data about the wide range of experiences a person has (online and offline). This API captures consistent data about a person's or group's activities from many technologies. Very different systems can securely communicate by capturing and sharing this stream of activities using xAPI's simple vocabulary.

Total Learning Architecture (TLA)
Resource: Technical Framework
Organization: Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative (ADL)
Use Case/Domains: Analytics, Content, Credentials
Description: Comprehensive framework combining xAPI, competencies, and learning records for lifelong learning ecosystems.

TrustEd Apps Accessibility Rubric
Resource: Policy Framework
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: A maturity-based self-assessment framework that helps edtech suppliers evaluate and improve the accessibility of their tools to support inclusive and equitable learning for all students. By providing a common structure for assessing accessibility practices beyond basic compliance, it enables institutions and suppliers to collaborate more effectively to ensure that digital learning environments meet the diverse needs of learners.

TrustEd Apps Data Privacy & Security Agreement (DPSA) Template
Resource: Policy Framework
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Data Privacy/Security
Description: A standardized framework that helps institutions and edtech suppliers streamline procurement while prioritizing student data privacy and security. By combining key elements of existing data sharing and privacy agreements, it speeds up contract processes and helps ensure consistent, interoperable data protection practices.

TrustEd Apps Data Privacy Certification
Resource: Data Privacy Framework
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Data Privacy
Description: A consistent framework for suppliers to clearly communicate how they collect, use, protect, and share student data within educational applications. Standardizing disclosures across key areas—data collection, security, third-party sharing, and advertising—helps institutions efficiently evaluate apps while ensuring that student privacy, safety, and data protection requirements are met.

TrustEd Apps Generative AI Data Rubric
Resource: Policy Framework
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: AI
Description: A foundational framework for evaluating and communicating the ethical, transparent, and safe use of generative AI data in educational applications. By starting with privacy, this self-assessment lets suppliers disclose AI usage, data practices, and user controls, and helps institutions understand and advance responsible AI adoption.

TrustEd Apps Security Practices Rubric
Resource: Policy Framework
Organization: 1EdTech
Use Case/Domains: Security
Description: A self-assessment framework designed to help suppliers clearly communicate their security practices for course-level tools, enabling institutions to understand better and mitigate potential risks. Promoting transparency and collaboration helps make procurement decisions more efficient and ensures essential security considerations are consistently addressed.

W3C Verifiable Credentials
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Credentials
Description: Standard for expressing credentials digitally in a way that is cryptographically secure, privacy-respecting, and machine-verifiable.

Web Accessibility Initiative - Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: Defines ways to make Web content and applications more accessible to people with disabilities, especially dynamic content.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Use Case/Domains: Accessibility
Description: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines is developed through the W3C process in cooperation with individuals and organizations around the world, with a goal of providing a single shared standard for web content accessibility that meets the needs of individuals, organizations, and governments internationally.

xPress IEP
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community
Use Case/Domains: Rostering
Description: A quick and simple standard to develop an API for the purposes of moving learners' IEP information between applications.

xPress Roster®
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community
Use Case/Domains: Rostering
Description: A quick and simple SIF-based standard to develop a rostering API that aligns with SIF.

xPress Student Record Exchange
Resource: Technical Specification
Organization: Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community
Use Case/Domains: K12 Student Record
Description: A SIF-based standard for the development of an API to facilitate student record transfer when a learner changes schools.