Copyright laws are something that all teachers should know accurately and can articulate. There are many actions, little or big, that teachers may believe are completely legal, but as I have found out from my EDMD 3300 class this semester, a lot of those things are, in fact, against the law and can get not only we, as teachers, in trouble, but our schools systems as well. Making sure that we do not break the five rules of copyright, reproduction, adaptation, publication, performance, and display, is a must when it comes to bringing copyright protected material into the classroom. (Library of Congress).
With all of the new technologies that this day and era has brought forth, our options for finding what we need to teach effectively are endless. The Internet makes it very easy for us to find information on our lesson plans and technology has advanced to where we can copy and cut things to fit what we like. Even though technology is an advantage for us, in a classroom we have to make sure that we know the guidelines. This could be problematic considering the Internet has no specific guidelines. We have to use our knowledge of what we already know about copyright to judge whether we believe taking something off of the Internet for classroom use should go without being discussed or if we should get permission first.
It is very important for teachers to understand the copyright laws and know them for every day use in the classroom. Following the rules of fair use and copyright is the equivalent to a student practicing honestly when taking a test. We expect our students to follow our rules and be academically honest so we should practice trustworthiness as well. If we do not ask permission for making more than a single copy, using more than thirty seconds of any song, or using cartoons already created for personal use in our own classrooms then we would be teaching our students honesty and trustworthiness when we ourselves are not following and that leaves our students to not respect us as their teachers.
Copying is one of the areas of copyright that is the hardest to follow. Teachers need to be be aware that copying coloring sheets, music, workbooks, etc. for their students use without permission is not only breaking copyright rules, but is classified as stealing. Cutting or editing any material for your own personal use is also against copyright. You cannot take one clip from a movie to show in your class and cut the rest out. That is tampering with something that has already been created. Using graphics for decoration and not instruction is not a purpose of fair use (Copyright 51).
Library of Congress. Reproduction of Copyright Works By Educators and Librarians. Washington, D.C. (2009). pp. 3.
Simpson, Carol. (2005). Copyright for Schools: A Practical Guide, Fourth Edition. Worthington, Ohio: Linworth Publishing, Inc.
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