GrassBlade xAPI Companion

GrassBlade xAPI Companion is a WordPress plugin from Next Software Solutions that lets a course site upload, host and track HTML5, xAPI, cmi5 and SCORM content. It is built for creators, training teams and schools who already run a WordPress LMS plugin and want to use packages made in professional authoring tools, with every interaction reported back to a Learning Record Store (LRS). It does not replace the LMS. It sits beside LearnDash, LifterLMS, Tutor LMS and the other plugins it supports and adds the content handling and reporting they lack on their own.

The same company also sells GrassBlade LRS, offered both on premise and as GrassBlade Cloud LRS, and the plugin is designed to pair with it. The homepage says the plugin "easily connects to GrassBlade LRS or any other LRS to sends xAPI statements", so a team that already runs a different LRS is not forced onto the company's own.

How the plugin works inside WordPress

The core workflow is simple. An instructional designer builds a module in an authoring tool, exports it as a package, and uploads it to the WordPress site through the plugin. The content then appears on a lesson, topic, unit or quiz page of the LMS, depending on which LMS plugin the site runs. While a learner works through it, the plugin sends xAPI statements to the LRS, and in several integrations the results also flow into the LMS's own reports.

The homepage describes each LMS integration separately, and the details differ:

• LearnDash LMS: content can sit on a lesson, topic or quiz page, with "complete user reports in LearnDash and LRS".
• WP Courseware: content on a lesson, unit or quiz, with interaction details in the native Gradebook and in the LRS.
• LearnPress LMS: content on LearnPress lessons, with interaction details in the LRS.
• LifterLMS: the page says you can add and track the four content types in LifterLMS.
• Tutor LMS: content on Tutor LMS lessons, with interaction details in the LRS.
• MasterStudy LMS: content on lesson and quiz pages, with activity reports in MasterStudy LMS and the LRS.

Sensei LMS and Moodle LMS also appear in the company's list of LMS integrations, so a team running either has a dedicated integration page to start from.

Authoring tools it accepts

The plugin is not tied to one authoring tool. The homepage says it supports "HTML5, xAPI, cmi5 and SCORM content from any authoring tool" and lists the popular tools the company has tested: Adobe Captivate, Storyline, Rise 360, iSpring Suite, Elucidat, Easy Generator, dominKnow, Evolve Authoring, Adapt Learning, Lectora, isEazy, Active Presenter, Goodhabitz, ej4 Content, Camtasia and Gomo Learning.

That list matters for two kinds of buyer. A corporate training team that already owns Storyline or Captivate licenses can keep producing in those tools and publish to a WordPress site instead of buying a separate hosted LMS. A team whose packages come from ej4 Content or Goodhabitz, both on the tested list, can host them on its own domain. Because the content stays in a standard format, it is not locked into a proprietary course editor.

Integrations beyond the LMS

The integrations section on the homepage goes well past the LMS plugins:

• Events Tracking records what happens on the WordPress site itself, such as login and logout, page views, enrollment and unenrollment.
• Vimeo: Vimeo videos can be added as xAPI content with what the page calls Advanced Video Tracking.
• Dropbox: xAPI content can be imported from Dropbox with one click.
• H5P.org: H5P interactive content can be used and tracked, with reports in the LRS and the LMS. The page adds that for this integration "LRS is not required".
• GamiPress: digital badges and points can be issued for activity on xAPI content and tracked in the LRS.
• Gravity Forms: form submissions can be tracked and sent to the learning record store.
• Groups: works with group plugins or the groups feature of an LMS, so an admin can create a group leader and share reports with them.
• Zapier: the page says the integration connects GrassBlade Cloud LRS with "more than 1500 plus applications", and offers a free integration through the GrassBlade Cloud LRS app for Zapier. That one runs through the cloud LRS rather than the plugin alone.

The menu also shows a family of smaller WordPress add-ons from the same company: Autocomplete LearnDash Lesson and Topic, Manage Enrollments for LearnDash, Manual Completions for LearnDash, Tutor LMS, WP Courseware, LifterLMS, LearnPress, MasterStudy and Sensei LMS, Visibility Control for the same LMS plugins and for WooCommerce, plus Experience API for GamiPress and Experience API for Gravity Forms. These are separate products, but they show that the company works across the main WordPress LMS plugins, not just one.

The reporting side

Reporting is the main reason to buy the plugin. Completion tracking tells you that a learner finished a lesson. With xAPI, the LRS receives statements about what the learner did inside the content, and the homepage stresses "powerful reporting capabilities" and "comprehensive tracking and reporting capabilities using easy built in filters".

The testimonials on the homepage show how this works in practice. The Airmanship Program Manager at the United States Air Force Academy writes that the program has used GrassBlade LRS since January 2019, that the LRS "houses courseware, affords web-based access, records completion, scores and documents attempts at hands-on activities conducted in the lab", and that student progress can be assessed at a glance. A reviewer from the University of Michigan Health System writes that the Gravity Forms add-on let educators build simple WordPress quizzes that track in their xAPI LRS, and that testers needed "only a 10-minute introduction" before they could start creating learning modules. Another customer, Steve Carlson of Integrated Advising Services, says he used the plugin to place content made in Articulate Storyline on his WordPress site. A reviewer from the Department of Social Services in New York City praises the documentation and the post-purchase support.

A recent post on the company blog announces GrassBlade xAPI Companion v7.0, which introduces a Global Search, so the plugin is still being developed.

Company, pricing and support

Next Software Solutions describes itself as an early adopter, "the first to bring xAPI to WordPress", and says it is "one of the contributors in the development of xAPI specification". The homepage says the team has been in eLearning for "8+ Years" and names Warner Bros, Walt Disney and a New York government agency among its portfolio.

The site publishes no prices on these pages; the homepage has a Buy Now button for the plugin and a Check Plans link for the cloud LRS. The homepage describes the company's pricing stance as "the cheapest price for the maximum capabilities", and there is a Try Demo link for anyone who wants to see the plugin before buying. A banner notes that the company is changing its payment options and license management. Support runs through a knowledge base, a support forum on Facebook and a ticket system, and the homepage says the team is ready to help "24×7". The footer links to a refund policy.

Who it suits

GrassBlade xAPI Companion suits a WordPress course site that wants to use real authoring-tool output instead of building every lesson in the LMS editor. That covers a corporate training team with Storyline or Captivate content, a compliance or certification program that needs a record of every attempt and score, a school or health system that wants simple WordPress quizzes to feed an LRS, and a creator who has outgrown basic completion tracking.

It is a less obvious fit for a first-time creator selling one video course. The plugin assumes you already run a WordPress LMS, and its value comes from xAPI data, which takes some learning to read well. A buyer comparing it with the built-in tools of their LMS should try the demo first and decide whether the LRS reporting is something they will use week to week. For teams that do want that depth on WordPress, it is a focused tool from a company that says it has worked on xAPI since the specification was designed.