We have relocated to Instructure Developer Documentation Portal. 🎉 Please update your bookmarks. This page will automatically redirect after July 1, 2026.
Canvas Roles
LTI generally recognizes that users make use of the integrated functionality offered by tools to platforms. These users typically come with a defined role with respect to the context within which they operate when using a tool.
The role represents the level of privilege a user has been given within the context hosted by the platform. Typical roles are "learner", "instructor", and "administrator". Note that it's entirely possible that a user might have a different role in a different context (a user that is a "student" in one context may be an "instructor" in another, for example).
The IMS role vocabularies are derived from the LIS specification
LTI 1.1 using the LIS 1.1 Roles
| Canvas Role | Role type | IMS role |
|---|---|---|
| user | System role | urn:lti:sysrole:ims/lis/User |
| siteadmin | System role | urn:lti:sysrole:ims/lis/SysAdmin |
| teacher | Institution role | urn:lti:instrole:ims/lis/Instructor |
| student | Institution role | urn:lti:instrole:ims/lis/Student |
| admin | Institution role | urn:lti:instrole:ims/lis/Administrator |
| observer | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Learner/NonCreditLearner |
| observer | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Mentor |
| AccountUser | Institution role | urn:lti:instrole:ims/lis/Administrator |
| StudentEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Learner |
| TeacherEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Instructor |
| TaEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/TeachingAssistant |
| DesignerEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/ContentDeveloper |
| ObserverEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Learner/NonCreditLearner |
| ObserverEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Mentor |
| StudentViewEnrollment | Context role | urn:lti:role:ims/lis/Learner |
Source: LTI 1.1 - Role vocabularies
LTI 1.3 using the LIS 2.0 Roles
Source: LTI 1.3 - Role vocabularies
LTI 1.3 using the LIS 2.0 LTI Advantage Roles
Source: LTI 1.3 - Role vocabularies