Copyright Information
Educators often encounter questions about copyright in the course of preparing teaching materials and creating scholarly publications. Fair use, embodied in section 107 of the Copyright Law, allows for certain uses of copyrighted work without permission. Also of interest to educators are the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act), which addresses issues of digital copyright and anti-circumvention measures, and the TEACH Act (Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act), which addresses distance education. This brief guide collects sources on copyright of particular interest to educators and others in the academic field.
Academic Copyright Sources
- For more information on retaining rights in your own work, see Article 28 Patents and Copyright Policies, CSU's official copyright statement regarding rights in copyrightable material. You may also consider the six types of Creative Commons Licenses offered for your own work, a model author/journal agreement through AALS, or a SPARC Author Addendum.
- Copyright & Fair Use Stanford University Libraries
This copyright and fair use portal is the most extensive on the web. It includes primary materials such as legislation, treaties, regulations, case law and more. You can also stay up-to-date with the site's articles, news stories and blogs. Finally, under Charts and Tools, you can find links to practical sites that can help you get a handle on copyright in an academic setting. - One of the easiest routes to go for obtaining copyright clearance is through the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC). The CCC has recently partnered with HeinOnline, which makes requesting copyright permission to use journal articles available through HeinOnline practically seamless.
- Three guides to copyright on campus are:
- Campus Guide to Copyright Compliance (Copyright Clearance Center)
This guide covers copyright basics, using content, copyright clearance, and other issues such as computer software, peer-to-peer (P2P) filing sharing, and use of student-created materials. - Campus Copyright Rights and Responsibilities: A Basic Guide to Policy Considerations (Association of American Universities, along with other associations) The first part of this document addresses exceptions and limitations to copyright, including fair use. The second part of the document suggests considerations for crafting an institutional copyright policy.
- Know Your Copy Rights (Association of Research Libraries)
This basic guide aimed at educators includes a handy chart explaining when you can use copyrighted works without obtaining permission or paying a fee.
- Campus Guide to Copyright Compliance (Copyright Clearance Center)
The Practical and Entertaining Side of Copyright
Test your knowledge of copyright or learn more about it with these tutorials, quizzes, videos and other practical and entertaining sources of copyright information.
- A Fair(y) Use Tale
Let this YouTube romp through your favorite Disney characters introduce you to copyright fair use. - Remix Culture: Fair Use Is Your Friend
Watch this entertaining and informative video from American University's Center for Social Media to learn more about the code of best practices in fair use for online video. - Copyright Scenarios: University of Minnesota and University of Alabama
So you're familiar with the standard law school hypothetical, but how will you do on these copyright stumpers? Try a few copyright hypos and read the responses on these two university sites. - Crash Course in Copyright
This tutorial from the University of Texas System discusses fair use, multimedia sources, scholarly electronic publications and more. - Interactive Guide to Using Copyrighted Media in Your Courses
Although the materials in this fun interactive "copyright metro" trip are specific to Baruch College / The City University of New York, they can help you get oriented to campus copyright. - Bound by Law: Tales from the Public Domain
An enjoyable adventure comic from Duke Law's Center for the Study of the Public Domain.
For Further Reading
- Steven A. Armatas, Distance Learning and Copyright: A Guide to Legal Issues (CD-ROM)
KF3030.1 .A947 2008 - Arlene Bielefield & Lawrence Cheeseman, Technology and Copyright Law: A Guidebook for the Library, Research, and Teaching Professions (2nd edition) KF3030.1 .B533 2007
- Rebecca P. Butler, Copyright for Teachers and Librarians KF2995 .B88 2004
- Kenneth D. Crews, Copyright Law for Librarians and Educators: Creative Strategies and Practical Solutions (2nd edition) University Library KF2995 .C74 2006
- Tomas A. Lipinski, The Complete Copyright Liability Handbook for Librarians and Educators
KF3080 .L57 2006
revised June 2009 (aeb)
links checked 9/09 (aeb)