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Copy Wrongs: Teachers Looking Online for Material, Be Warned
Know what you can -- and can't -- download for the classroom.
by Star Lawrence
Credit: Getty Images
As tech-savvy teachers integrate more multimedia work into their classroom, they also face a thorny question: Who owns the visual, audio, and moving images they download and pop into their presentations? Get that answer wrong, and you may get dinged with a hefty fine.
"I don't think most teachers willingly ignore copyright issues," says David Ensign, a professor of law at the University of Louisville, in Louisville, Kentucky. "But I do think many have the impression that any use of material in education is fair use."
Fair use is a component of U.S. copyright law that allows limited use of copyrighted material without obtaining written permission, purchasing the work, or paying the creator a royalty. Typically, fair use provides for the legal, nonlicensed citation or incorporation of copyrighted material in another author's work, and applies when they are used for such applications as scholarship or review.
It's a concept with increasing importance in the modern classroom. Students weaned on tech are demanding more in terms of riveting class material. Consequently, teachers are scouring online sources looking for video, audio, snips, clips, and Web sites they can add to their presentation -- anything to capture and hold their students' attention.
Seems simple, but there's a catch. "Fair use in the educational setting is defined more broadly but does not encompass all uses," warns Ensign.
Fair use in the classroom is often dependent on the subject matter of the content. Ensign says a teacher may not be allowed to show the film The Lion King to the class simply because it was raining and the kids were squirrelly. It could be shown only if the class were doing a study of Disney films or were engaged in the study of a related subject.
Ensign recommends that every school and school district create and enforce a copyright usage policy that is very clear about what is allowable for classroom use. One easy out: linking. Ensign says he doesn't paste copyrighted material into his lessons and course plans -- he links to it. Commenting on a quoted passage is also fair use, as blogs do.
Yet another approach is provided by Smart Technologies, a company that has teamed up with centuries-old publisher Cambridge University Press to offer the Global Grid for Learning, consisting of more than a million pieces of copyright-cleared digital information. These include copyright-cleared images, video clips, audio files, text documents, and learning objects ready for teachers to incorporate into their lessons.
Before dismissing these options, educators should realize that failure to honor copyrights can cost them personally. "Teachers and librarians don't realize that although they're acting on behalf of the school and are not benefiting personally," Ensign warns, "it doesn't mean they're not personally liable."
my stuff
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on May 27, 2008 - 15:12.
If I draw a picture and put a copyright mark on it,without going through the state, what does that mean?
Copyright laws
Submitted by Erin Runcie (not verified) on May 13, 2008 - 12:19.
I definitely do not consider copyright laws often enough. There are many times when my students do research that they don't adequately cite their source. Also, we use pictures from the internet for all sorts of projects. I have never considered giving credit to the cite where I found the picture. I need to make this a priority, not only to protect myself, but also to set an example for my students.
Copyright laws
Submitted by Crista Plant (not verified) on May 12, 2008 - 12:45.
I am never quite sure what I need to do to make sure I haven't overstepped the boundaries of copyright laws. To make myself safe I always try to make sure there is a ling to what I am talking about or put the exact address for others to view at a later time. As far as in my kindergarten classroom, this isn't really an issue.
Copy Wrongs: Teachers Looking Online for Material, Be Warned
Submitted by Charity (not verified) on May 12, 2008 - 10:06.
This article did not give many ideas other than the linking idea. Linking is a bit annoying because at times there are so many links that by the time you research them all it is difficult to get back to your original site. The Lion King example rationale was a bit hazy for me as well.
Intepreting copyright laws
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on May 15, 2008 - 08:18.
I always try to obey copyright laws. However, sometimes the law seems difficult to understand because I hear different interpretations or examples. I agree that the Lion King example was confusing. I agree that showing movies should be incorporated into the whole lesson or theme. If I bought a movie at home, I am permitted to invite some friends over to watch it.
I thought that copyright laws for movies permitted showing a movie to a group of students, especially in the classroom, as long as there was no profit made, or it was not being broadcast to a larger outside audience. For example, the school could not show it at an assembly where parents and families were invited, or it could not be displayed on an outdoor screen. Is this a correct interpretation of the law, or am I misguided?
I would like to see a list of ways to utilize fair use in the classroom.
copyright
Submitted by Christy Yacano (not verified) on November 20, 2008 - 19:13.
Schools cannot show movies unless there is a direct curriculum tie to it. To show them as a reward or for a rainy day, you must purchase a movie license (see www.movlic.com for information on this). Our school used to do this a lot, but as a teacher-librarian, I received information on this being illegal. Just because you purchase the movie (for personal use), you do not have the right to show it to a group of students, no matter the size. You purchase it in good faith for personal use. With the internet being so accessible, it is important to teach students to cite all of their sources - even for pictures. Unfortunately most people believe that if it is online, it's free. Educators need to change this thinking.
Copy Wrongs: Teachers Looking Online for Material, Be Warned
Submitted by Charity (not verified) on May 12, 2008 - 09:28.
THIS ARTICLE WAS A GOOD REMINDER, HOWEVER OTHER THAN THE LINKING IDEA GAVE NO GREAT ALTERNATIVES. LINKING CAN BE A BIT ANNOYING BECAUSE YOU GET BUSY GOING FROM PLACE TO PLACE AND THEN FIND IT DIFFICULT TO GET BACK TO WHERE YOU STARTED. THE LION KING EXAMLE SEEMED A BIT HAZY TO ME AS WELL.
Copyright issues in the classroom
Submitted by Doris Winkler (not verified) on May 12, 2008 - 08:57.
Copyrighted material has always been a problem. I like the idea of linking.
Global Grid For Learning may be worth the yearly fee if you consider the Peace of Mind you would get using Fair Use materials. No stress or time spend researching.
Copyright question
Submitted by Susan (not verified) on May 12, 2008 - 07:32.
What is the difference between linking to a page for students to use, and copy and pasting the same document to a word editing document, citing the source?
Sometimes the internet is not as reliable as we would like and to fend off classroom downtime due to technical difficulties having the actual document ready for reading deals with potential internet problems and class can continue. And sometimes handing out a document is preferred rather than sending students to an online page. And yet still, in some cases students have not yet obtained internet use permission but we would still like them to keep up in class.
Is there an appropriate way to deal with these issues?
Know what you can -- and can't -- download for the classroom
Submitted by Jami Barrientos (not verified) on May 12, 2008 - 07:19.
I love the idea of linking to a specific picture, video, or piece of text. This eliminates the worry of copyrighting. It also gives the students a view of the picture, video, or text within a full text. This would allow them to view this site for additional information.
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