T003 – Adding BookWidgets to Blackboard Learn as an LTI 1.3 Tool

This guide explains how a Blackboard Learn administrator can register BookWidgets as an LTI 1.3 (LTI Advantage) external tool using the BookWidgets Client ID.

Before you begin:

  • You need a Blackboard Learn account with system administrator rights.
  • If you are migrating from an existing LTI 1.1 deployment, see Migrating from LTI 1.1 for details and implications of such a migration.

Step 1: Open the LTI Tool Providers page

  1. Log in to Blackboard Learn as an administrator.
  2. Go to the Administrator Panel.
  3. Under Integrations, click LTI Tool Providers.

Step 2: Register BookWidgets with the Client ID

  1. Click Register LTI 1.3/Advantage Tool.
  2. In the Client ID field, paste the BookWidgets Client ID: 196a6047-1df1-49a2-8c81-21f85b9795d7  
  3. Click Submit

Note: If you already had BookWidgets installed as an LTI 1.1 tool, you will be offered to upgrade it to LTI 1.3. See Migrating from LTI 1.1 for details and implications of such a migration.

Step 3: Review the tool settings

Blackboard now shows the BookWidgets tool details, which are filled in automatically. Review the following settings:

  1. Copy the Deployment ID shown in the tool details. You need it in Step 4.
  2. Make sure Tool Status is set to Approved.
  3. Under Institution Policies, select the following user fields to send to BookWidgets: Role in Course, Name and Email Address.
  4. Make sure Allow grade service access is set to Yes, so BookWidgets can send scores to the Blackboard Gradebook.
  5. Make sure Allow Membership Service Access is set to Yes.
  6. Click Submit.

BookWidgets now appears in the list of LTI tool providers.

Step 4: Send the Deployment ID to BookWidgets

Email the Deployment ID (Step 3) and your Blackboard Learn URL to sales@bookwidgets.com. BookWidgets will register your deployment and confirm when the integration is ready.

Tip: If you didn't copy the Deployment ID in Step 3, open the BookWidgets entry on the LTI Tool Providers page and select Edit to view it again.

Step 5: Test the integration

  1. Open a test course.
  2. In the course content, click the + icon where you want to add content and select Content Market (Ultra courses), or go to Build Content (Original courses).
  3. Select BookWidgets, pick or create a widget, and return to Blackboard.
  4. Open the content as a teacher and as a test student to confirm that the launch works and that grades are passed back to the Blackboard Gradebook.

BookWidgets is now available to all teachers on your Blackboard Learn instance.

Migrating from LTI 1.1

If BookWidgets was previously installed on your Blackboard Learn site as an LTI 1.1 tool, Blackboard Learn can migrate the existing BookWidgets activities to the new LTI 1.3 tool. Before you migrate, be aware of the following implications:

  • Existing widget links keep working. BookWidgets activities that teachers already added to their courses remain available and don't need to be recreated.
  • Teachers need to reconnect their BookWidgets account. The first time a teacher opens BookWidgets from Blackboard Learn after the migration, they are asked to link their existing BookWidgets account again. Their widgets and earlier results remain available in that account.
  • Students get a new BookWidgets account. Students are automatically given a new account, with new storage for all widgets. This means the current progress students have made in their widgets is reset.
  • New submissions appear under a new course in BookWidgets. Submissions made through existing widget links after the migration are collected in BookWidgets under a new course with the same name as the original one.
  • Some placements may be duplicated: The duplicate placements can be removed

Tip: Plan the migration at a quiet moment, for example between terms, so students don't lose work in progress on widgets they're still working on.

Because the migration will only work after BookWidgets has registered your new deployment ID, send an email before the migration with an estimate of the time of the migration, so we can coordinate and register the deployment ID as quickly as possible.

Troubleshooting

  • BookWidgets doesn't appear in courses: check that Tool Status is set to Approved (Step 3). You can also open the BookWidgets entry on the LTI Tool Providers page and click Manage Placements to check that its placements are available.
  • BookWidgets can't identify the user or course: check that Role in Course, Name and Email Address are selected under Institution Policies (Step 3).
  • Grades don't appear in the Gradebook: check that Allow grade service access is set to Yes (Step 3).
  • Launching BookWidgets shows a registration error: check that BookWidgets has confirmed your Deployment ID (Step 4).
  • Registration fails with an unknown Client ID: check that the Client ID was pasted completely and without extra spaces. If the problem persists, contact sales@bookwidgets.com.
  • I no longer see my previously submitted results after migrating from LTI 1.1: A new deployment results in a new BookWidgets course when you open the BookWidgets results link. To see your previous results, navigate to Courses , where you will find a course with the same name containing your previous results.
Did this answer your question? Thanks for the feedback There was a problem submitting your feedback. Please try again later.