AI within Academic Tools
page last updated 3/2/26
Overview
Our staff in ITS and the Center for Instructional Innovation (CII) approach AI with curiosity, care, and caution. We recognize that faculty, staff, and students may have concerns about the release of AI tools and AI features within our enterprise academic systems. The CII expects to grow our relationships with University entities, including the Faculty Senate, to include reviewing AI within Canvas and other academic tools. See also the AI Hub, a collection of resources and AI-related activities at Western:
Best Practices for Using AI in Academic Tools
Take care not to use personal and sensitive information when using AI tools.
Only put institutional data classified as public into AI tools.
Consult with ITS when considering getting approval to integrate AI tools with University systems (e.g., plug-ins).
Coordinate with ITS staff on AI usage to protect you and the University.
AI Features and Status
Following are AI-related features and availability within our suite of supported tools along with who has access (e.g. faculty, staff, students) to them.
Opt-in Focus
Instructure's 7/31/25 announcement says, "All AI capabilities are entirely opt-in. Institutions will have full control over which features they enable, with granular settings available down to the course level."
Instructure's 1/13/26 press release expands upon this stance with the following:
- Closed-Loop System: AI interactions occur securely within the institution's environment; data is not shared with OpenAI or other providers or used to train external models.
- Strict Opt-In: Institutions maintain full control, enabling features at the institutional, departmental or course level.
- Transparency: AI tools are clearly marked with a consistent, easily-identifiable user experience, making it easy for users to know when and where AI is being used and encouraging better digital literacy and ethical use.
Nutrition Facts
See Artificial Intelligence in Education Resources for detailed "Nutrition Facts," which describe how Canvas course data would be used, stored, and retained with each AI feature. Note that this page includes features not relevant for WWU and also ones that may be newly released. The following chart describes any features ATUS has evaluated.
| Feature | Description | Availability in Canvas | Status at WWU | Implementation Method | Cost | Primary users |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IgniteAI Summaries for Discussions | Automatically generates summaries of discussion activity to support instructor review and synthesis. | available | disabled | opt-in by faculty at course level | no cost | Faculty |
| Enables context-aware, multilingual search to help users locate course content more efficiently. | available | disabled | opt-in by faculty at course level, then enable in navigation | no cost | Faculty and Students | |
| IgniteAI Translations for Discussions and Announcements (and Inbox, see next) | Offers real-time, context-sensitive translation of curricular communications to support multilingual participation and equitable access. | available | disabled | opt-in by faculty at course level | no cost | Faculty and Students |
| IgniteAI Translations for Inbox | Instructors and students can send Canvas Inbox messages that automatically include a translated version of the message in a selected language, alongside the original text. | available; institution-wide only | disabled | opt-in at admin level for all users | no cost | Faculty and Students |
| IgniteAI Generator for Rubrics | Allows instructors to generate draft rubric criteria based on an assignment description | available as feature preview | disabled | opt-in by faculty at course level | may incur additional cost in the future | Faculty |
| IgniteAI Insights for Discussions | Provides AI-generated insights to help instructors identify trends and engagement patterns in Canvas discussions. | available as feature preview | disabled | opt-in by faculty at course level | may incur additional cost in the future | Faculty |
| Intelligent Insights | Administrative analytics tool designed to support strategic planning and student retention analysis. | available for purchase | disabled | opt-in at admin level for all users | not purchased by WWU | Admin |
| IgniteAI Agent | A faculty chat assistant capable of translating natural language requests into complex Canvas workflows (not for students at this point). | not available | n/a | n/a | may incur additional cost in the future | Faculty |
Canvas Resources
| Feature | Release Status | Status at WWU | Target Population | Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic Captions - automatic captioning of videos created or imported | In production/available | Enabled | All users | How to Edit or Delete Captions |
| Multi-language Automatic Captioning and Smart Features - specify the language used for automatic captioning, Smart Search, and Smart Chapters | In production/available | Enabled | All users | How to Use Multiple Language ASR Captioning |
| Smart Search - search for specific parts of videos by words spoken, supported in 20 languages | In production/available | Enabled | All users | Learn About Smart Search for Cloud |
| Smart Chapters - text recognized on the screen is used to generate Smart Chapters | In production/available | Enabled | All users | How to Use Smart Chapters |
Access AI:
| In production/available; premium add-on features | Not purchased or enabled by WWU | All users | Panopto Access AI |
| Elai Interactive Video - convert text, lesson notes, or slide presentations into videos; translate content | Production; premium add-on features | Not purchased or enabled by WWU | Creators | Interactive Video Learning with Elai |
Panopto Resources
- Powered by AI - AI Roadmap
- Generative AI Video - Elai
| Feature* | Release Status | Status at WWU | Target Population | Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In-meeting Questions - in-meeting questions to find out what was missed | In production/available | Off but can be enabled by each user | All users | |
| Smart Recording - creates highlights, smart chapters, summaries, and next steps | In production/available | Off but can be enabled by each user | Zoom hosts set access | |
| Meeting Summary - generate a summary and next steps | In production/available | Off but can be enabled by each user | Zoom hosts set access | Using Meeting Summary with AI Companion |
| Virtual Background Generation - generate a custom virtual background | In production/available | Off but can be enabled by each user | All users | Once enabled, searchable from in-meeting Virtual Backgrounds setting |
| AI Companion Panel - chatbot; users can ask questions about their own meetings, chats, and docs and receive tailored responses | In production/available | Disabled | All users | Using the AI Companion panel |
*To have the full set of features, ensure Zoom is updated on your device: https://zoom.us/download
Zoom Resources
| Feature | Release Status | Status at WWU | Target Population | Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Question Generator | Beta | Enabled by Socrative; optional | Faculty | No student data shared with OpenAI via the AI Question Generator; teacher must determine accuracy. |
Socrative Resources
Background
Since 2023, our team has researched and explored many facets of AI, mostly focused on how it will impact teaching and learning. CII staff act as leaders in AI-related discussions and continue to explore AI in the Western community in a variety of ways, including the following:
- Develop support documentation and presentations. See FAQs.
- Work with WWU stakeholders to update plagiarism, academic integrity, and other guidance documentation.
- Research and present on AI detection.
- Consult with the Academic Integrity office in AI-related academic honesty cases.
- Consult with the Disability Access Center in AI-related accommodation discussions.
- Facilitate discussions about AI in public venues, classrooms, committees, and within the WWU AI Users Group and the AI Hub at Western.
- Evaluate AI releases, tools, and features in enterprise academic systems, and work with governing bodies and leadership to ensure decisions about utilization are enacted.
Support
- Contact CanvasHelp@wwu.edu for teaching and learning-related support.
- Reach out to the AIHub@wwu.edu for AI conversations and explorations.
- Contact the ATC or Faculty Senate representative for your department/college.