VoiceThread Docs / VT in your Learning Management System / LMS Administrators / Schoology

What is LTI?

LTI is an abbreviation for Learning Tools Interoperability, which is a standard protocol developed by 1EdTech. It allows services like VoiceThread to integrate with your Schoology environment as single-sign-on tools.

The resulting experience for instructors and students is simple:

  1. Sign in to your Schoology account.
  2. Navigate to your course.
  3. Click on the VoiceThread LTI link.
  4. Use VoiceThread.

Clicking on a VoiceThread LTI link will authenticate the user, establish an account for him if he didn’t have one already, and enroll him in his course within VoiceThread. No additional work is required from the instructor or student.


LTI Tool Configuration

Before instructors can use VoiceThread, it must be configured globally for your Schoology instance by an administrator.

  1. Go to Tools -> School Management -> Integration -> External Tools.
  2. Click on the “Add External Tool Providers” button.
  3. Enter Tool Name (for example: “VoiceThread”)
  4. Enter Consumer Key and Shared Secret (provided by VoiceThread)
  5. Select Privacy settings to determine what information is sent from Schoology to the external tool provider. Name and email are strongly recommended.
  6. Select Configuration Type “Manual”.
  7. In the “Match By” menu, select “URL”.
  8. Enter the LTI Configuration URL (provided by VoiceThread).
  9. Under Custom Parameters, enter “breakout=1”.
  10. Click “Submit”.

Troubleshooting Tips

Error message: “Could not find Org for this launch.”

Make sure you have entered the Consumer Key correctly.

Error message: “The authentication failed; the signature on your request did not match the expected value” or “Unsupported Signature Method”

Check to make sure the Shared Secret is entered correctly.

If the Shared Secret is accurate, please make sure the clock on your Schoology server is accurate.

Error message: “Oh, buttons! We are unable to find [path]”

Make sure the URL is entered correctly.

Clicking the “Return to course” link after creating a VoiceThread assignment creates multiple embedded iframes

Make sure the custom parameter of “breakout=1” is entered correctly.

Instructors can’t see student submission for grading

The student likely did not click the “Submit Assignment” button after completing his work. The student can simply go back into the assignment and click “Submit Assignment” at a later time. He will not need to re-do his work.

You’re not automatically signed in to VoiceThread when you click on a VT link

Make sure your web browser accepts third-party cookies.

When you click on a VT link, you see a page titled “VoiceThread Account Verification”.

This means you already had a VoiceThread account under your email address, and the system is now trying to connect that existing account with your Schoology profile.  You’ll only need to complete this step once.  To proceed through this page:

  • Click on the link that says “Set it here” to set a verification password for your account.
  • Proceed through the steps to set a password.  This will involve receiving an email from VoiceThread.
  • Use that password you just set on the verification page.