Assign a Wayground Common Assessment on Canvas via LTI for Teachers

Wayground's LTI integration makes it easy to assign a Common Assessment directly through Canvas — no extra logins or platform-switching for your students. This article walks you through creating the Canvas assignment, launching the session lobby, and admitting students, including what to expect when LockDown Browser is required.

Before you begin: Make sure the Wayground LTI app has been installed in your Canvas instance by your school or district administrator. If you don't see Wayground in the External Tools list, contact your admin.

Part 1: Create the Canvas Assignment

1. Log into your Canvas account.

2. Navigate to the Canvas course you want to assign the assessment to.

3. Click + Assignment to create a new assignment.

4. Under Submission Type, select External Tool.

5. Click Find and select Wayground from the list of external tools.

6. If prompted, log into your Wayground account.

7. In the Wayground panel that opens, click the Common Assessments tab at the bottom of the screen.

8. Select the Common Assessment you want to assign from the list.

9. Click Start Session.

10. Review the session setup screen. If accommodations are needed for specific students, configure them here. When ready, click Continue.

11. Back in the Configure External Tool dialog on Canvas, check the "Load in a new window" option.

    Note: Enabling "Load in a new window" ensures the Wayground session opens correctly and students are not blocked by Canvas frame restrictions.

12. Set any remaining Canvas assignment settings (due date, availability dates, points, etc.).

13. Click Save & Publish.

Your Wayground Common Assessment is now published and visible to your class. ?

Part 2: Open the Assessment Session Dashboard

Once the assignment is published, you can open the session lobby to manage student admission and start the assessment.

1. From the Canvas assignment page, click Load Assessment in a new window.

2. The Wayground session lobby will open in a new tab. From here you can see which students are waiting to be admitted, manage accommodations, and start the assessment.

Part 3: Student Experience — Joining the Session

Students follow these steps to join your assessment:

1. Student logs into Canvas and navigates to your course.
2. Student clicks on the assignment.
3. Student clicks Load Assessment in a new window.
4. Wayground opens in a new window and the student lands in the lobby, where they wait for the teacher to admit them.

Note: Students are automatically signed into Wayground via Canvas — no separate Wayground login is required.

Part 4: Admitting Students and Starting the Assessment

If LockDown Browser is NOT required

1. You will see a notification in the session lobby that a student is waiting for admission.
2. Admit the relevant student(s) by clicking Admit.
3. Click Start Assessment when you are ready to begin.
4. Admitted students are notified that the assessment has started and can begin answering questions.

If LockDown Browser IS required

LockDown Browser is configured by the Common Assessment creator. If it is required, both you and your students will be notified in the session lobby.

Read more about the LockDown Browser.

Teacher steps:

The session lobby workflow is the same as above. You will see students appear as waiting once they have successfully launched LockDown Browser.

Student steps:

1. In the Wayground lobby window, students will see a notification that LockDown Browser is required to take this assessment.
2. (Optional) Students can click Test to verify their LockDown Browser installation before proceeding.
3. Students should close all other open applications and notifications on their device.
4. Click Start Assessment.
5. When prompted, click Open LockDown Browser OEM to launch the application.
6. LockDown Browser will open and secure the device. If any applications are still open, students will be prompted to close them — click Close on each prompt.
7. Wayground will reload inside LockDown Browser and the student will see "Waiting for your teacher to start" until the teacher starts the assessment.

Update prompt: If a LockDown Browser update is available, students will be prompted to either Download the latest version (recommended) or Continue without update.

Not installed? If LockDown Browser is not installed on the student's device, they will be prompted to download and install it. Direct them to wayground.com/join/ldb-test for installation instructions.

Once all students are admitted and ready, click Start Assessment from the session lobby. Students will be notified immediately and the assessment will begin.

And done!

Your students are now taking the assessment. You can monitor their progress and view live progress directly from the Wayground session dashboard.