The primary purpose of ISO/IEC 19788 is to specify metadata elements and their attributes for the description of learning resources. This includes the rules governing the identification of data elements and the specification of their attributes. NOTE All concepts are defined in Clause 3. ISO/IEC 19788 provides data elements for the description of learning resources and resources directly related to learning resources. This part of ISO/IEC 19788 provides principles, rules and structures for the specification of the description of a learning resource; it identifies and specifies the attributes of a data element as well as the rules governing their use. The key principles stated in this part of ISO/IEC 19788 are informed by a user requirements-driven context with the aim of supporting multilingual and cultural adaptability requirements from a global perspective. This part of ISO/IEC 19788 is information-technology-neutral and defines a set of common approaches, i.e. methodologies and constructs, which apply to the development of the subsequent parts of ISO/IEC 19788.