Introduction

Canvas is Virginia Tech's learning management system (LMS). Instructors use Canvas to manage teaching materials like assignments, quizzes, feedback, and student grades. 

• Official courses are automatically created in instructors' Canvas accounts.
• Enrolled students are automatically added.
• Instructors can reuse teaching materials by importing them to a new course site.
• Canvas provides 24-7 support by phone (833-639-7621) and chat (click Help on any Canvas screen).

The Canvas LMS Instructor Guide and the Canvas LMS Student Guide have full instructions on using Canvas. These instructions are specific to Virginia Tech. To see other Canvas topics, please see:

• Using Canvas at Virginia Tech (for Instructors)
• Using Canvas at Virginia Tech (for Students)

Contents

• Background
• External Tool Types and Locations
• Accessing External Tools in Canvas
  
  • Add to the Course Navigation Menu
  • Add to an Assignment
  • Add to a Module
  • Add to the Rich Content Editor
  • Start Collaborations
• List of External Tools & How To Use Them
  
  • Publisher Tools
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Multimedia Tools
  • Assessment Tools
  • Accessibility Tools
  • Other Tools
• Requesting New External Tools
• Common Canvas External Tool Scenarios
  
  • I can't find the tool in Assignments or Modules
  • I can't find the tool on the Course Navigation Menu
  • I can't find the tool in the Rich Content Editor
  • External (LTI) tools won't load
• Getting Help

Instructions

Background

Canvas can be enhanced through the integration of external tools. Various software providers, textbook publishers, and training platforms offer their tools for use within Canvas. While some tools are available at no cost, others must be purchased. Virginia Tech's Canvas external tools are categorized here based on broad categories for publisher tools, collaboration tools, multimedia tools, assessment tools, accessibility tools, and tools that didn't fit into those categories. 

Instructors can request new external tools be added to Canvas.

• Canvas administrators and Virginia Tech Procurement will help you navigate the review process, which includes reviews for compliance, security, and technical compatibility.
• Only Virginia Tech Canvas administrators, not Canvas Support, can add an external tool to Canvas or to your course site.
• Not all requests can be fulfilled. 

To be easily integrated with Canvas, external tools should be designed according to the Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) standard. Search for LTI-compatible tools at EduAppCenter. 

Canvas external tools are considered applications or apps. Canvas and some companies refer to external tools as LTI apps or external apps. 

External Tool Types and Locations

External tools appear in different places in a Canvas course site. See the table for tool type and where tools appear in Canvas. 

Location in Canvas	Publisher Tools	Collaboration  Tools	Multimedia Tools	Assessment Tools	Accessibility Tools	Other Tools
Course Navigation  Menu	- Attendance - McGraw-Hill ALEKS* - McGraw-Hill Connect LTIA* - McGraw-Hill SIMnet LTIA* - Access Pearson* - SCORM* - WileyPlus*	- Chat - Eli Review* - Google Drive - Microsoft Education - Packback* - Piazza* - Zoom	- Panopto	- Parchment Digital Badges - Gradescope - LockDown Browser - Course Analytics* - Poll Everywhere (VetMed) - Portfolium - SPOT (Course Evaluations) - TopHat - Web-CAT	- Anthology Ally	- VT Add Guests* - LibGuides (VT Library Help) - Redirect
Assignments	- Attendance - Buzz Publish Anywhere - Cengage  - FlatWorld - InQuizitive - LinkedIn Learning - Macmillan LTI Advantage - MatLab Grader - McGraw-Hill ALEKS - McGraw-Hill SimNet LTIA - Access Pearson - Pressbooks - SCORM - WileyPLUS	- Chat - Eli Review - Google Docs   Cloud   Assignment - Google Assignments - Hypothesis - Microsoft Education  Notebook - Packback - Piazza	- YouTube - Vimeo	- CodeGrade - CrowdMark (Math) - Gradescope - Panopto Video  Quiz - LabFlow (Chemistry) - Labster (Biology) - LockDown Browser - Course Analytics - Portfolium - Top Hat - Turnitin Plagiarism Framework - Web-CAT	- EquatIO	- VT Add Guests - Redirect - Student Learning & Licensure (SOE)
Modules	- Attendance - Blended Teaching (Real Estate) - Cengage  - FlatWorld - LinkedIn Learning - Macmillan LTI Advantage - McGraw-Hill Connect - McGraw-Hill Go - McGraw-Hill SIMnet - Access Pearson - Pressbooks	- Chat - Eli Review - Google Drive - Hypothesis - Microsoft Education - Piazza - Zoom	- Vimeo - YouTube	- Parchment Digital Badges - CrowdMark (Math) - LabFlow (Chemistry) - Labster (Biology) - LockDown Browser - Course Analytics - Portfolium - Top Hat - Web-CAT	- EquatIO	- Apporto - VT Add Guests - Redirect
Rich Content Editor	- FlatWorld - LinkedIn Learning - Access Pearson - Wiley Resources	- Google Apps - Google Drive - Microsoft Education	- Panopto - Vimeo  - YouTube		- EquatIO
Collaborations		- Google Apps - Microsoft Education
Files					- Ally
Discussions	- SCORM	- Google Apps - Microsoft Education	- Vimeo  - YouTube
Quizzes	- SCORM	- Google Apps - Microsoft Education	- Panopto - Vimeo - YouTube

*Hidden by default from the Course Navigation Menu. 

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Accessing External Tools

How to access and use a tool depends on where it's integrated in Canvas:

• Add the Course Navigation Menu - Control which tools display in the Course Navigation Menu.
• Add to an Assignment - Set up a Canvas Assignment that uses the tool.
• Add to a Module - Link the tool's content or an Assignment to a Module.
• Add to a Rich Content Editor - Link the tool to a Page or to the Syllabus.
• Add to Collaborations - Use the tool inside of Canvas Collaborations.

Add to the Course Navigation Menu

1. Log in to Canvas.
2. Go to the course you want to add the tool to.
3. Click Settings in the Course Navigation Menu.
4. Click the Navigation tab.
5. Click and drag the tool from the area below Drag items here to hide them from students to the area above it.
   
6. Scroll down and click Save. The tool will be added to the Course Navigation Menu.

Add to an Assignment

1. Click on the Assignments tab in the course navigation menu and click +Assignment to create a new assignment. You can also edit an existing assignment.
   
2. For Submission Type, choose External Tool from the drop down list and click Find. 
   
3. In the Configure External Tool window, click on the tool you want to add and click Select. 
   

Add to a Module

1. Click on Modules in the course navigation menu and click the plus sign to add the external tool to an existing Module, or you can create a new Module by clicking +Module.
   
2. For Add, choose External Tool from the drop down menu. Click on the external tool you'd like to add from the list and click Add Item.
   

Add to the Rich Content Editor (RCE)

1. Create or edit an assignment, page, or discussion post.
2. Click the Plugin button then click View All. 
   
3. You'll see all external tools available to use in the RCE.

Start Collaborations

1. Click Collaborations in the Course Navigation Menu. 
2. Under Start a New Collaboration, for Collaborate using, choose Google Apps, Google Assignments, or Microsoft Education. 
   

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List of External Tools & How To Use Them

Click the category to pull up the article or click on each tool for more information.

Publisher Tools Blended Teaching (Real Estate) Buzz Publish Anywhere Cengage Learning FlatWorld Knowledge InQuizitive LinkedIn Learning Macmillan LTI Advantage McGraw-Hill ALEKS McGraw-Hill Connect McGraw-Hill SIMnet Pearson Pressbooks SCORM WileyPLUS Collaboration Tools Chat Eli Review (English only)  Google Apps/Google Drive Google Assignments (LTI 1.3) Hypothesis Microsoft Education Packback Piazza Zoom

Multimedia Tools Panopto Vimeo YouTube Assessment Tools CodeGrade Parchment Digital Badges CrowdMark (Math) Gradescope iClicker Panopto Video Quiz LabFlow (Chemistry) Labster (Biology) MatLab Grader Course Analytics Poll Everywhere (VetMed) Portfolium Respondus Lockdown Browser SPOT Top Hat Turnitin Plagiarism Framework Web-CAT (Computer Science) Accessibility Tools Ally EquatIO Other Tools Apporto LibGuides (VT Library Help) Redirect Student Learning & Licensure (SOE) VT Add Guests

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Requesting New External Tools

Because Canvas is centrally managed, only administrators can install external tools. All integrations must first go through Virginia Tech’s formal approval process with Procurement, which includes reviews for compliance, security, and technical compatibility. 

Please keep in mind that not all Canvas external tool requests can be fulfilled.

To request a new tool:

1. Submit the Canvas Integration Request Form.
   • Go to the Learning Management System (Canvas) form.
   • Log in and click Request this Service.
   • Under Service Requested, choose Request New External Tool be Added to Canvas.
   • Complete the form with as much detail as possible.
2. Submit a Requisition in HokieMart.
   • Your department must submit a requisition for the software in HokieMart using account code 12755, even if the tool is free.
   • In the requisition's Internal Notes, include that a Canvas integration is desired.
   • For more information on software purchases and requirement, visit Procurement's site and refer to the IT Procurement Procedures section.

Both steps must be completed to initiate the formal review process. Please note that the approval process may take six weeks to six months or longer, depending on vendor responsiveness and the availability of review groups. All tools must complete this process before they can be made available in Canvas.

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Common Canvas External Tool Scenarios

I can't find the tool in Assignments or Modules

Make sure the tool is approved for use in Virginia Tech's Canvas.

• If it's approved, it will be listed under List of External Tools & How To Use Them.
• If it's not approved, you can request it be added to Canvas.

I can't find the tool on the Course Navigation Menu

1. Make sure the tool is approved for use in Virginia Tech's Canvas.
   
   • If it's approved, it will be listed under List of External Tools & How To Use Them. Not all tools appear in the course navigation menu.
   • If it's not approved, you can request it be added to Canvas.
2. See if the tool is hidden. Go to the site's Settings -> Navigation. Drag the tool to the top list and Save. 
   
   • See Add Tool to the Course Navigation Menu. 
3. See help information for that tool. 

I can't find the tool in the Rich Content Editor

1. Click the Plugin button in the Rich Content Editor to see if it's there. 
2. Make sure the tool is approved for use in Virginia Tech's Canvas.
   
   • If it's approved, it will be listed under List of External Tools & How To Use Them.
   • If it's not approved, you can request it be added to Canvas.

External (LTI) tools won't load

See Recommended Browser Privacy and Security Settings for Canvas.

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Getting Help

For instructions on resolving common issues with Canvas, see:

• Troubleshooting Canvas (for Instructors)
• Troubleshooting Canvas (For Students)
• Recommended Browser Privacy and Security Settings for Canvas

Instructure, the creators of Canvas, provide 24-7 Canvas support, including live chat and a support hotline.

To get Canvas help, click Help on any Canvas screen and choose from help options:

• Search the Canvas Guides: Search Canvas documentation. 
• Chat with Canvas Support: Open a chat window in Canvas (or call the phone number). 
• Contact Virginia Tech 4Help: Submit an incident on 4Help or call 540-231-4357.
• Browse Virginia Tech Resources: See other Canvas Knowledge Base articles.
• Report a Problem: Submit a Canvas support case by filling out a short form.
• Ask the Community: Go to Canvas user community resources. 

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