ISO/IEC 19788-7:2019

Overview

ISO/IEC 19788-7:2019 - part of the MLR (Metadata for Learning Resources) series - defines the bindings that map MLR constructs to web and Semantic Web technologies. The standard provides machine-readable RDF mappings for MLR entities (DESs, RCs, DEs, APs, MLR records, DEGSs), prescribes both linguistically neutral and linguistic HTTP IRIs/URIs for those entities, and supplies excerpts of an OWL 2 DL ontology (MLROnt) for resource classes and data element specifications. It supports publishing MLR metadata as Linked Data for interoperable discovery, versioning and management.

Key Topics

• RDF mappings of MLR constructs: How data element specifications (DESs), resource classes (RCs), data elements (DEs), application profiles (APs), records and group specs map to RDF and the RDF 1.1 data model.
• HTTP IRI/URI guidelines: Rules for global (non-linguistic) and localized (linguistic) persistent canonical HTTP URIs, prefixes, and RFC 5141–based identifiers for standard identifiers.
• Literal vs non-literal content mapping: Treatment of linguistic and non-linguistic data elements, including serialization details.
• Serializations and examples: Use of Turtle 1.1 and TriG serializations for RDF datasets and MLR records.
• OWL ontology (MLROnt): Excerpts presented in OWL 2 DL (Manchester syntax and class diagrams) to express resource classes and DES properties.
• SKOS binding for vocabularies: Mapping MLR vocabularies to SKOS concepts, IRIs for vocabularies and concepts, and vocabulary datasets.
• Practical tooling notes: RDF dataset encoding, localized ontology versions, SPARQL query examples (in annex), and guidance on versioning and persistent identifiers.

Applications

ISO/IEC 19788-7 is intended for professionals who publish, manage or integrate learning resource metadata:

• Metadata architects & cataloguers implementing standardized learning resource metadata as Linked Data.
• LMS and educational content platform developers converting MLR records to RDF/Turtle/TriG for search and interoperability.
• Semantic web engineers creating MLROnt-based applications, SPARQL endpoints, or SKOS vocabularies aligned with MLR.
• Standards bodies and repositories managing persistent identifiers, localized metadata vocabularies, and application profiles. Practical uses include publishing interoperable metadata for discovery, supporting multilingual catalogs, enabling automated harvesting, and integrating learning resources across systems.

Related Standards

• ISO/IEC 19788-1 (MLR framework and core rules)
• Other parts of the ISO/IEC 19788 series (vocabularies, application profiles)
• RDF 1.1, OWL 2, SKOS, and RFC guidance on URIs/IRIs (e.g., RFC 5141)

Keywords: ISO/IEC 19788-7, MLR, metadata for learning resources, RDF mapping, OWL 2 DL, SKOS, HTTP IRI, Linked Data, metadata ontology, application profiles.