
IMS Learning Design

IMS Learning Design (IMS LD) was a specification for a metalanguage which enables the modelling of learning processes. The specification was maintained by IMS Global Learning Consortium. 
There has been no further work on this specification since 2003, rendering this specification as abandoned. 
The Larcana Declaration on Learning Design in 2012 was an attempt provide a new theoretical foundation for the field of Learning Design. However, not further work has been released since. 
Background.
IMS LD has its origins in the Educational Modelling Language developed at the Open University of the Netherlands, with the IMS LD specification being released by the IMS Technical Board in February 2003.
Description.
IMS Learning Design was a metalanguage for describing learning designs that claims to be pedagogically neutral (according to their authors, it does not mandate a specific pedagogical approach). The specification can be likened to a stage-play:
IMS LD is made up of three levels (A, B and C), with each level extending and incorporating the previous:
Use.
The specification was a method for describing teaching strategies (pedagogical models) and educational goals. The language is represented in XML which makes it machine readable; an IMS LD-aware tool is able to "play" a unit of learning. 
After its release (2003), IMS LD had a moderately active community -mostly in Europe, carrying out a wide range of research and experimentation. However, none of these research projects rendered a practical implementation that could be used at scale. 