GakuNin LMS & LA Platform: Development and Long-Term Operations

Background & Challenge

The National Institute of Informatics (NII) operates "GakuNin LMS," a learning management system that provides common educational content and enrollment records to higher education institutions across Japan. To realize "Learning Analytics (LA)" — using learning logs to improve education — NII is building the LA platform, which collects, analyzes, and visualizes the learning logs accumulated in GakuNin LMS using internationally standardized formats.

Note: For inquiries about GakuNin LMS and the LA platform themselves, please contact the operating organization, NII RCOS.

Note: For details on academic activities, see NII RCOS Resources and NII Repository .

Udzuki's Role

Compliance with international standards (xAPI/Caliper)

Handles learning logs in formats compliant with international standards, independently adapting to specification changes

GakuNin/Shibboleth authentication integration

Integrates GakuNin/Shibboleth federated authentication, letting each university's existing accounts be used as-is

Automatic scaling with Kubernetes

Automatically scales during peak access periods, such as the start of the academic year

Connection to the academic network SINET

Connects to the academic network SINET, supporting the network environment specific to universities and research institutions

Public cloud utilization and continuous improvement

Builds and operates a cloud infrastructure on AWS, prioritizing business continuity while continuously reviewing costs