Copyright, Teachers, and the Law

Why You Should Care
You cannot escape copyright.  It has become a focus of litigation with high profile cases such as the shutdown of MegaUpload to the Cyber Monday crackdown.  All teachers need to understand it, not just because of the legal implications, but because we frequently use materials from all over the place.  The Drummond and Woodsum conference made it clear we have an obligation to stay on the right side of the law, and outlined a framework to help us stay within it.

Copyright Defined
Copyright is the right of a creator control the reproduction, reproduction, creation of derivative works, distribution, public performance and public display of anything they make.   It starts the instant that you put pen to paper, and expires at least 90 years later.  Legally, you (or your employer) can control everything about your creation.  You don’t have to register the copyright, or plaster © across it.  You own it.

Copyright can be tricky if you didn’t create the material yourself. Don’t fear, you can still legally photocopy, post to your blog and in general use the materials, if you stay within one of three exceptions.

Exception 1: Get Clearance
If you want to use a resource, just ask!  Often, rights holders will give you permission to use their work, or a portion of it.  Ask nicely and explain you’re a teacher.  You will often get a positive response.  However, a silent lack of objection does not imply their blessing.  When in doubt, plan ahead, and get permission.

Exception 2: Copyleft / Creative Commons
Ever seen the phrase “all rights reserved”?  That’s traditional copyright – Creative Commons is the opposite – “some rights reserved”.  It is designed to allow people to freely use information by offering a permissive license where the original owner gives up some rights.  For instance under Creative Commons NonCommerical license you can use image in a classroom but a corporation would be banned from using it to advertise.

Creative Commons it is a growing movement: much of what is on Flickr is Creative Commons, all the text on Wikipedia is Creative Commons, and even everything published by best selling author Cory Doctorow.  If you’re looking for music, media, images, videos or text, Creative Commons Search can help you find it.

You’ll still need to follow the Creative Commons License, but you’ll likely be able to do that without needing to track down the creator and getting permission.

Exception 3: Fair Use
Fair use is the most complicated way to stay on the right side of the law.  Fair use is an exception to copyright law to protect researchers, reporters, critics, and academics.  It protected you in college when you quoted from books in your research papers.

To be considered fair use, your use must pass a four factor test:

1. (The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes (Are you trying to make money?)
2. The nature of the copyrighted work (Is it factual (more likely to be fair use), or fiction (less likely to be fair use)?)
3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole (Use a piece, not the whole thing.)
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work (Will someone lose a sale?)
   (adapted from copyright.gov)

A Final Note
Drummond and Woodsum advised that if you are interested in using copyrighted works try to get clearance first or find work with a Creative Commons license.  Only then rely on fair use, and consult the district policy on Copyright first (PDF).  Of course, I’m not a lawyer, so if you’re in doubt, consult one.

Additional Resources:
Copyright Basics (PDF)
Creative Commons
Creative Commons Search
Student Acceptable Use Policy Part 1 (PDF) Part 2 (PDF)