Instructor Copyright Knowledge
What information about copyright laws has surprised you in this course?
I find the time for copyrights after death so long compare to the earlier 28 years to 70 years and more!
The information actually raises a number of questions. For example, if someone is posting an ad on eBay to sell a guitar and copies the specification information from an ad for the same guitar for sale posted by a store, is it an infringement? Or the seller copies information from the web posted by the manufacturer, is it an infringement.
I will be using the name of a store in an upcoming book and have received the owners verbal permission. Do I need to have the permission in a written contract?
Robert,
I would have it in writing just in case. If problems were to arise, they usually come from the owner.
Renee Shaffer
The lawsuits were a surprise. Does anyone have a way to get answers from copyright holders if not quickly, eventually?
Thanks, Virginia
Virginia,
Email is a great faster option.
Renee Shaffer
My greatest surprise at this point would be the definition of "Fair Use." Fair use, as the definition suggests, is: "knowingly using copyrighted materials in a legitimate and justifiable way"; however, legitimate and justifiable is an ambiguous term as it relates to an individuals moral compass.
However, later in the reading and in our assessment, it stated that copyrighted material should not detract from the copyright holder to make money. This seems like a fine line that brings litigation to its finest.
The I realized that nonprofit institutions could fall under the fair use act and utilize copyrighted resources to an extent, but did not realize some of the guidelines for that. Working in a for-profit institution. I never bothered to look too closely to the fair use act because I knew that for-profit institutions could not take advantage of that.
Just to echo Renee's thoughts--on the occasions that I have sought permission from publishers--permission was often granted within just a few days. Sometimes there is a form to fill out. We try to funnel copyright questions/requests for permission through our school's librarian.
The biggest surprise is that there is a difference between non profit and for profit schools. To me, education does not discriminate.
The second surprise is that the institutions need to develop and publish their policies on this. Instructors could be doing the right thing and the institution could be behind in this aspect.
The 70 years. I thought it was 50 years after inception
I think the term "for-profit" scares many still to this day.
I think the worry is the "for-profit" means take advantage of the system for some reason.
Hello All,
Good morning! Copyright laws, as outlined in this training module so far, can be quite complex when getting into the legal issues. Technology and information advances so quickly that it is no surprise that relevant legislation has difficulty keeping up with the times. Yet, the general principle and concept behind copyright laws should be able to transcend medium. Perhaps this is too simplistic of a view. Separate from the legal issues and complexity of the law, what surprises me the most is just the sheer struggle that many instructors and students have in this area. In its raw form, copyright laws simply means do not steal and use resources (content) without permission from the copyright holder. Why do you all think there are struggles in this area?
Have a great day!
-Al
What surprised me most was that there is actually so many established rules. As I mentioned in the earlier posting, there tends to be very little guidance in this area other than the odd memo taped to a wall.
I think students need to learn about this as much as faculty!
Thanks,
Phil Lewis
Certainly, as others have brought up, the difference between non-profit and for-profit institutions has been enlightening to read about. I do think I understand why this difference exists, but it would also be helpful to have more guidelines for "for-profit" institutions. I work at both.
The thing that I find confusing is the difference between in-person presentations and items posted on an LMS. Honestly, I'm still confused about this.
For example, it talks about it being no problem to show a full video or movie in the context of a F2F classroom. Does this also apply to images? I teach art, so this is very relevant to me. On that note, I just finished up another facdev class about social media, in which it said that as far as copyright issues, it doesn't apply if you are showing an image of an artist's work to highlight their technique. This is mostly what I present images for in my classes. However, based on what I'm reading, I definitely should not post a powerpoint I presented in class of images of artists' work (at least contemporary work) in our LMS, right? And how does this copyright issue apply to showing images in class of an artist's technique? Thanks in advance for any guidance or input!
I think there are struggles because from my experience, teachers are not generally being given info either about copyright laws, or about the ramifications of breaking copyright laws. Fair use is up for at least some interpretation, and from my experience, when I have asked for further guidance, I'm not sure my superiors have known the rules either - in the past I've definitely received information that is different from what we are discussing here. These are just some of the issues!
I teach for both a profit and for a non profit institution, and the information concerning each one has been enlightening. I do understand how copyright law and application can be confusing to an instructor, especially since most instructors are focused upon providing the best educational experience that they can for their students.
Additionally,the TEACH ACT wording has been a bit surprising for what is reasonable to one may not be to another.
Jennifer,
yes in face to face classes, no problem showing images. But as soon as you videotape it or otherwise put it in the LMS anyway other than the original view, you need to ask permission. Especially if you are showing the artist's (creative) techniques, you need to ask permission. You are bound to receive it, no problem. And in an art class, any time you or student take that work and add to it, edit it, etc. You must have permission!
Renee Shaffer
Great - thanks for the clarification!! I didn't see your response earlier - my email quarantined my forum subscriptions!
