Copyright Definitions and Terms
What are some of the most important definitions to understand when dealing with copyright issues?
LiKeyasha,
What you wrote is so true. We need to impart solida digital literacy to our students and letting them know about Creative Commons, for example, is a great place to start. Thanks for being in the class.
Renee Shaffer
The course emphasizes fair use, intellectual property, public domain, TEACH Act, copyright infringement and Creative Commons.
I think each one is really important for educator’s to understand and direct students in properly utilizing. Creative Commons, intellectual property, and public domain are really important to relay to students.
What a great example...giving realworld tangible examples always help to bring home the matter.
Hello:
The most important definitions to understand when dealng with copyright issues are:
Public Domain
First Sale Doctrine
Copyright Infringement
Teact Act (2002)
DMCA
Piracy
Work for Hire
Yvette
Joe,
I agree with you that public domain issues are important, but there is a great deal more to copyright than public domain as you will find as you continue along with this course. Thanks for being here.
Renee Shaffer
I feel that the most imortant issues are understanding what is public domain and the boundaries within which material may or may not be used withou the proper permissions
Virginia,
Yes, it always surprises me on what students don't know!
Renee Shaffer
Virginia,
I too, feel that it is our duty to educate our students on how to use copyrighted materials.
Renee Shaffer
Great point about students use of APA citation. Many of my students think that posting the reference at the bottom of their essays absolves them from any further responsibility. I try to post a "heads-up" in my discussion forum at least once during the five weeks of my online course that addresses this issue. It is surprising how many students have never heard about this topic before!
It is important to understand copyright laws as they pertain to today's marketplace. Intellectual ownership of original materials such as published works, music, or choreography are considered copyrighted as soon as they are distributed to the public.
Instructors and student both need to be made aware of the newest guidelines and best practices for accessing and using copyrighted material.
I think, as I mentioned in an earlier post I believe, that "fair use" is a concept that must be properly understood. Fair use does not mean "fair game," as the learning materials indicate. Also, as I believe I posted earlier, what is considered fair in general usage may not be legal in regard to copyright protections.
A key term to master when considering copyright issues is "fair use." As a threshold issue, it is crucial to understand that "fair" in a legal context can be quite different from "fair" in everyday usage. For example, an online professor may think that it is fair to show a snippet from a national news source to underscore a current event. But, the network owns the snippet, and the network may not want it used out of context, even for educational purposes.
It is essential that online instructors stay current while remaining legally compliant. When in doubt, ask for permission in writing.
Jeffrey,
So true. I am glad that you are there to teach that to your students!
Renee Shaffer
Many of my students are familiar with this case, as well as Fairey's tampering with evidence. Fairey is among many of the artists my student idolize. They often wear T-shirts featuring his designs. If only the t-shirt had an explanation of the copyright laws printed on the tag! Fair Use has many grey areas, however it needs to be stressed to student that some of the copyrighted learning tools used in a school environment are often created solely for use in that environment.
Cyndy,
Yes, I am sure you are like me and question how students who cannot "craft a three sentence email" can then somewhow send in stellar writing assignments. That is where plagiarism checks like Turnitin and Safe Assign come in. We as instructors can educated students in this digital era that copying is not kosher. Information literacy needs to start from an early age in my opinion.
Renee Shaffer
As an individual who did not grow up in the internet era when going through the education, I would have loved to have had this available to me in the 1970-1980's , I read emails sent to me my students who can barely craft a three sentence email, but yet send an assignment through which is flawless. So the copyright infringement comes to my mind here, and the ethical behavior which is associated with this at the time of submission. I believe that everyone believes that this is free for the taking. Just looking at the Face Book Folks, and how much is downloaded and uploaded across the world, never once are pictures cartoons,etc... marked with acknowledgement of the site sent. This has given me much caution for things that I am "playing" with on line.
I know "Fair Use" has been mentioned multiple times in the first section of this course. I am hoping to gain more insight on the details of how this applies in the classroom. I teach at a for-profit school, and I know that the rules are a bit more strict when using copyrighted materials than they are for non-profit schools.
Robert,
I hadn't heard of this legal battle, thanks!
Renee Shaffer
Some of the most important definitions to understand include, the words: “copyrightâ€, fair use, work for hire, and public domain. These terms are often either misunderstood or ignored concepts by many in both public education and for-profit educational environments, as well as in society at large. There is also widespread confusion regarding the differences between copyright infringement and plagiarism. Oftentimes plagiarism is more of an embarrassment for the guilty party or in some cases it may have repercussions that result in failure of a course or expulsion from school. Copyright infringement goes beyond simply crediting a source and has legal ramifications that can result in a lawsuit.
In the graphic design courses that I teach one of the recent current events that we discuss is the legal battle that ensued following the production of the now famous Obama “Hope†poster created by artist Shepard Fairey. The Associated Press claimed copyright infringement based on a photograph that was taken as a work for hire assignment by freelance photographer Manny Garcia. Although the class is not a criminal justice course – we discuss the case at length with the students in terms of the role of copyright as it applies to commercial art and visual communication.
