Overview
ISO/IEC 19788-9:2015 - part of the Metadata for Learning Resources (MLR) series - defines data elements for persons (individuals and organizations) that are related to the description of a learning resource. Using the data element specification model from ISO/IEC 19788-1, this part standardizes how to record identifiers, names, contact details, affiliations, geolocation and communication accounts (vCard, email, phone, VoIP, social networks) so that persons associated with learning resources are consistently described for discovery, exchange and reuse.
Key topics and requirements
- Data element specifications (DES): Defines named DES entries (for example DES0100 Identifier, DES0200 Name through DES1800 Phone Number) with codomains, value rules and examples.
- Person-related attributes: Includes Identifier, Name, Family Name, Given Name, Contact Information, Affiliation, Email Address and related contact descriptors.
- Contact/account types: Supports structured records for vCard, communication accounts, VoIP ID, social network ID/name, phone type and phone number.
- Geolocation support: Elements for Geographic Point, Latitude, Longitude to associate persons or organizations with location coordinates (normatively referencing ISO 6709).
- Resource classes: Defines resource classes such as Natural Person, Organization, Geographic Point, Communication Account, VoIP Account, Social Network Account, Telephone Account, and VCard.
- Interoperability artifacts: Includes predefined rule sets, Data Element Group Specifications (DEGS), multilingual vocabulary/labeling (English/French/Russian), XML name mappings and a crosswalk annex to align MLR with other schemas.
Applications and who uses it
ISO/IEC 19788-9:2015 is intended for professionals and systems that manage metadata for educational content:
- LMS and repository developers implementing standardized person metadata for search and discovery.
- Digital librarians and metadata specialists creating consistent contributor/creator records.
- Content providers and educational publishers tagging authors, contributors and organizations for sharing and reuse.
- Interoperability architects and integrators mapping person metadata across standards and systems (e.g., LOM, Dublin Core).
- EdTech vendors adding institutional directories, collaboration tools, or social/communication links to learning resources.
Related standards
- ISO/IEC 19788-1 (Framework) - foundational model and rules used by Part 9
- ISO 6709 - standard representation of geographic point location by coordinates
- Other parts of ISO/IEC 19788 (Parts 2–8, 11) provide complementary elements (Dublin Core mapping, technical and educational elements, MLR records)
ISO/IEC 19788-9:2015 helps ensure consistent, machine-actionable person metadata across educational systems, improving discovery, attribution and integration of learning resources.