Copyright Concerns

Week 3: Thing 6 
Creative Commons Images

I found some beautiful images of bees to show my students.  I could see their proboscises as well as their fine body hairs.  Too bad they were copyrighted!

Week 3: Thing 7
Copyright Issues in Education

When an educator is searching for material to use in the classroom, the choice often rests between having the needed material by copying it, or not having what is needed in order to observe copyright laws.  Admittedly, I've copied copyrighted material to use in my classroom.  It saves the school money.  It saves me precious time.  It is right? No.  Is it sometimes necessary? Yes.  Teachers are constantly on the prowl for materials.  When they find what they need, most do not take the time to investigate whether or not it's copyrighted.  On the internet, many assume that if it's "out there" then it's free game.  Why would you put your work on the web if you don't want anyone to use it?  Surely the creators are aware that it is very easy to copy, change, and redistribute their material.  Several years ago, when I was making my web site, I was required by my instructor to give credit to all images and sites referenced on any page of my site.  One site that I wanted to link with was created by a woman in California.  I called her school, found out that she no longer worked there, and ended up talking to the web site developer.  He told me not to worry about it and to go ahead and use it.  His feeling was that material on the web was free game.  The following web site clearly explains an educator's role in fairly using the material of others:

http://www6.district125.k12.il.us/staffdev/Copyright.html

The four factors used to determine whether or not the use of coyrighted material is a "fair use" case follow:

What are the Four Factors?

1. the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
2. the nature of the copyrighted work;
3. the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.

Only the courts can determine whether a particular use is a fair use or not.
So, what's the moral of this story?

Week 3:  Thing 7
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