Integrations Documentation

LTI Advantage (v1.3)

Learning Tools Interoperability® (LTI®) is a standards-based integration that allows Brightspace to connect securely and easily with external learning tools. The connection enables Brightspace to pass information to the tool in a standards-based way. This information includes the user’s role (learner or instructor) and the course from which the tool was launched (for example, Biology or Creative Writing). It can also create user accounts in the tool upon launch, acting as both registration and single sign-on within one workflow. Additionally, LTI Advantage supports grade return from an LTI tool to the Brightspace Gradebook. The LTI Advantage standard is extensive and covers many functional areas. D2L does not yet support all aspects of the standard but is committed to ongoing support and innovation.

LTI Advantage (1.3)

LTI Advantage is now the only version of LTI supported by IMS. LTI Advantage consists of a launch protocol and a package of optional extensions:

Launch: The LTI 1.3 core launch flow follows a modern security approach by adopting OpenID Connect (OIDC) specifications, OAuth 2.0, and JSON Web Tokens.
Assignment and Grades Services v2.0 (AGS): A replacement for the Basic Outcome service. AGS allows the LTI tool to create and manage grade objects and exchange scores and instructor comments. AGS includes additional capabilities, such as two-way gradebook integration. The LTI tool can request updates to grade values linked to the tool’s assignments, allowing the Brightspace Gradebook and the tool to remain in sync.
Names and Roles Provisioning Services v2.0: A service that allows the LTI tool to request a list of participants in a course offering in a secure manner. Typically used to repopulate the classlist in the external tool.
Deep Linking 2.0: A replacement for the Content Item Message (CIM) service. Provides an intuitive way to add specific content from a publisher directly into Brightspace content, creating a seamless learner experience.

What is LTI Advantage vs LTI Advantage Complete?

The LTI Advantage badge is awarded by IMS Global when a tool certifies its integration against the IMS certification suite using LTI 1.3 and one or two of the available extensions. If certification is completed with LTI 1.3 and all optional tool extensions, the LTI Advantage Complete badge is awarded.

LTI Advantage (1.3) advantages

LTI Advantage includes many new features that improve upon earlier LTI versions:

Updated administrative workflows, including a centralized process to register and deploy a tool. This reduces and simplifies where tools can be created in the organization, providing LTI administrators better visibility into tool usage and location.
Improved control over which extensions are implemented, both during registration and deployment. This allows LTI administrators to control which extensions are enabled for specific tools.
Assignment and Grades Services (AGS):
- Supports multiple grade items linked to the same LTI link, removing the need for the LTI tool to use Brightspace APIs to support this workflow.
- Supports comment passback from the external tool to the Brightspace Gradebook.
- Supports the external tool requesting updated grades from the Brightspace Gradebook to keep grades synchronized.
Asset Processors for Assignments:
- Supports the processing of assignment submission for Originality, AI, grammar and more. Third party tools can download assignment submissions, process the file and return a report for learners and instructors to see in Brightspace.
Anonymous evaluation workflows in Assignments (Asset Processor):
- If an instructor enables Hide student names during assessment for an assignment that uses supported processor tools, Brightspace shares the assignment’s anonymity status with the tool. This allows tools that support anonymous workflows to hide personally identifiable learner information during evaluation.
Deep Linking:
- Supports optional start, end, and due dates that can be applied at the content topic level.
Updated IMS Configuration UI:
- Supports both institutional and contextual role passing. This allows the external tool to know the user’s role at the organization level as well as in the organization where the activity was launched. For many clients, these may be different roles.
LTI Advantage Service User
- LTI Advantage uses a D2L generated role and user, called the LTI Advantage Service User, to log all LTI grade activity. This role and user are created during initial tool registration and are used by all LTI Advantage tools.
- If the role or user is accidentally disabled, D2L automatically generates the missing role or user the next time the tool is registered.
- The role created by D2L has no permissions and cannot be seen in classlists.
- The role is limited to the LTI Advantage scopes enabled by the LTI administrator at the registration and deployment level for the specific tool.
- If the user is disabled, logging of actions still occurs.

Getting Started with LTI Advantage (1.3)

Familiarize yourself with LTI Advantage:
- IMS Global LTI Advantage Overview
- IMS Global Learning Tools Interoperability: Access to LTI 1.3 and extension specifications
- LTI Advantage Product Certifications: Stay up to date as tools certify for LTI Advantage
- OAuth 2.0
- OpenID Connect (OIDC)
Review your institution’s LTI tools and their compatibility with LTI Advantage (1.3). All tools must move to LTI Advantage to maintain IMS LTI compliance.
Determine which in-house tools are not LTI Advantage certified and identify what is required to bring them into compliance.