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A content package is a file containing content in a database
metadata
Metadata is "data that provides information about other data", but not the content of the data, such as the text of a message or the image itself. There are many distinct types of metadata, including:
* Descriptive metadata – the descriptive ...
.
A content package is used in e-learning to define some learning content or an assessment that can be delivered, for example by a
Learning Management System
A learning management system (LMS) is a software application for the administration, documentation, tracking, reporting, automation, and delivery of educational courses, training programs, materials or learning and development programs. The learni ...
. It's a standard way of describing learning content that can be read by many programs.
The most widely used content packaging format is that defined by IMS Global, which uses an
XML
Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup language and file format for storing, transmitting, and reconstructing arbitrary data. It defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a format that is both human-readable and machine-readable. T ...
manifest file called imsmanifest.xml wrapped up inside a zip file. The learning content itself is either included in the zip file if it is HTML or other media that can run on its own, or else is referenced as a URL from within the manifest.
The IMS format was used by
SCORM
Shareable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) is a collection of standards and specifications for web-based electronic educational technology (also called e-learning). It defines communications between client side content and a host system (cal ...
to define their packaging format, and typically every sharable content object (SCO) is defined by a content package.
The AICC also define a content package format for material that can be called by the widely used AICC HACP standard. Their format consists of four comma separated ASCII files that define details about the learning content including a URL.