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Writing Help

Speech-to-Text, annotations, and the Authorship Shield writing history.

What’s in This Section

Writing Help provides tools for anyone who thinks faster than they can type, struggles with spelling, or needs to capture ideas on the go. Speak your thoughts and let AssisT transcribe them.

Features: Speech-to-Text (STT), Annotations, Authorship Shield

Speech-to-Text (STT)

What It Does

Transcribes your voice into text in any text field. Dictate essays, notes, emails, or anything else. Includes 80 spoken command forms for editing without touching the keyboard.

How to Enable

  1. Click the AssisT icon
  2. Choose the Writing group
  3. Toggle Speech-to-Text ON
  4. The first time you dictate, AssisT asks whether you agree to use Chrome’s speech recognition (see STT Engine below). Choose Allow
  5. Grant microphone permission when Chrome asks

Using STT

  1. Click in any text field (email, document, form, etc.)
  2. Click the microphone icon that appears near the field
  3. Start speaking naturally
  4. Your words appear as text in real-time
  5. Click the microphone again to stop

You can also start and stop dictation from anywhere on the page with Alt+Shift+V. Dictation tells you in plain words when it is starting, recording, paused, or blocked because the microphone is not allowed.

Supported Input Types

STT works with a wide range of text inputs:

  • Standard inputs: Text fields, email fields, search boxes, URL bars
  • Textareas: Multi-line text areas on any website
  • Contenteditable elements: Rich text editors used in Canvas, Moodle, and other LMS platforms, including Canvas’s rich content editor

The microphone button appears automatically when you focus any supported field. Field detection is always active, so the button shows immediately even if you toggle STT on after the page has loaded.

The mic button tracks your scroll position — if you scroll the page while a text field is focused, the mic button moves with it and stays anchored to the field. This works on all platforms including Canvas’s overflow panels and nested containers.

Voice Commands

STT recognises 80 spoken command forms for hands-free editing, with several ways to say each action:

Deleting:

  • “delete last word”
  • “delete last sentence”
  • “delete all”

Punctuation:

  • “period” / “full stop”
  • “comma”
  • “question mark”
  • “new paragraph”
  • “new line”

Formatting:

  • “bold that”
  • “italic that”
  • “underline that”
  • “heading 1” through “heading 6”

Navigation:

  • “go to beginning”
  • “go to end”
  • “select all”

Editing:

  • “undo”
  • “redo”
  • “replace [word] with [word]“

STT Engine

AssisT uses Chrome’s own speech recognition (the Web Speech API). It needs no installation, but it is a Google service: while you dictate, Chrome sends the sound of your voice to Google to turn it into text. Nothing is sent to Fiavaion. Because your voice leaves the device, AssisT asks you before dictation first starts, and starts nothing without a yes. You can change your answer in the popup under Advanced options, Your data.

The Lecture companion uses the same service but hears the whole room, including other people, so it asks its own separate question.

Note: Chrome speech recognition is the only engine that works in 1.0.0. The engine list also shows a greyed-out “Whisper Offline (coming soon)” entry, which is not available yet.

Keyboard Shortcuts

ShortcutAction
Alt+Shift+VStart or stop dictation

STT Profiles

Different profiles optimise recognition for different needs:

ProfileWhat it sets
DefaultContinuous dictation, words shown as you speak, standard voice commands
ADHD FocusSimple voice commands
Dyslexia SupportThree alternative words offered, simple voice commands
Anxiety CalmStandard voice commands
Motor ImpairmentTwo alternative words offered, voice commands start with “command”
Low VisionStandard voice commands
Autism ComfortLiteral voice commands starting with “do”, words shown only once final

Profiles are applied through User Profiles (Advanced options → Preferences).

Authorship Shield

What It Does

Keeps a private record of how a piece of writing came together. As you type into a text field, it takes an on-device snapshot after each pause, so the record shows the draft growing rather than appearing all at once. A card lists the documents it has recorded, and Copy report puts the history for one of them on your clipboard, ready to paste into an email or a document. If your work is ever questioned, you have something to show rather than having to argue from nothing.

Being able to prove your own authorship matters most to the students who type slowly, dictate, or write in bursts, because those are the working patterns that look unusual to a detection tool.

Where It Lives

The history is stored on your device only. It is not uploaded, and nobody at Fiavaion or your institution can see it unless you copy the report and hand it over yourself.

How to Enable

Authorship Shield is on by default, in the popup’s Writing group, and has its own switch there if you would rather it were off.

Annotations

What It Does

Add sticky notes and highlights to any webpage. Notes persist and reappear when you revisit the page. Export notes for study or reference.

How to Enable

Sticky Notes is off by default. Turn on Sticky Notes in the Writing group, then use the shortcut or the highlight menu to start annotating.

Creating Sticky Notes

Quick method:

  1. Press Alt+N to create a note in the middle of the window
  2. Type your note
  3. Click outside to save

From selected text:

  1. Highlight text on the page
  2. Click Annotate in the highlight menu
  3. Note is attached to that text

Sticky Note Features

  • Colours — Choose from 5 colours (Yellow, Blue, Green, Pink, Purple) to categorise notes
  • Resize — Drag the bottom-right handle, or focus it and use the arrow keys
  • Move — Drag the header to reposition

Highlighting Text

  1. Select text on the page
  2. Click Annotate in the highlight menu
  3. Choose a highlight colour in the window that opens
  4. The highlight persists on that page

Managing Annotations

View all notes on a page:

  • Open the annotations sidebar on the page

Export notes:

  • In the annotations sidebar, choose Export
  • Choose a format (Markdown, plain text, JSON or CSV)

Delete notes:

  • Click the X on any individual note

Where Notes Are Stored

Notes are stored on your device, in Chrome’s local storage for the extension by default. If you keep a large collection, Sticky Notes settings let you keep them in IndexedDB instead, which is also on your device. They:

  • Persist across browser sessions
  • Stay attached to specific pages (by URL)
  • Can be exported for backup
  • Do not sync between devices (for privacy)

For Educators & Parents

Why Writing Help Matters

For students with dyslexia:

  • STT bypasses spelling difficulties
  • Voice commands reduce keyboard dependence
  • Students can focus on ideas, not mechanics

For students with ADHD:

  • Speaking is often faster than typing
  • Captures ideas before they’re forgotten
  • Voice commands keep momentum going

For students with motor difficulties:

  • Reduces physical strain of typing
  • Hands-free editing via voice
  • Sticky notes require minimal interaction

Classroom Tips

  1. Practice voice commands first — Have students memorise 5-10 basics
  2. Use in drafting, not final editing — STT excels at getting ideas down
  3. Combine with TTS — Dictate, then listen back to review
  4. Export annotations — Create study guides from page notes

Privacy Note

STT: Voice recognition uses Chrome’s speech recognition, a Google service: the sound of the student’s voice goes to Google to be turned into text. Nothing goes to Fiavaion. AssisT asks the student before dictation first starts, and the answer can be changed under Advanced options, Your data.

Annotations: All notes are stored on the device. Nothing is uploaded. STT settings are stored in chrome.storage.local on that device only and do not sync across devices.

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