Thing 10: Copyright, Fair Use, and Creative Commons

Copyright and Fair Use

As we move into a digital environment, it is important to make sure teachers and students understand the importance of Copyright and Fair Use.  For many of the projects students complete they will need to use pictures to make them come alive.  While students own the rights to any picture they take with a camera, if they use a picture from the internet or take a screenshot of something they find, they must follow the rules of copyright and fair use.  In Alief ISD, we have several measures in place to help make sure students are aware of how to properly cite information they find on the web.  (Click here to review the forms and documents available.)  However, students may not be aware of how to properly use and cite multimedia they find on the internet.  It is our job to make sure students are taught how to cite all sources properly. 

Review the following articles, videos, and interactive sites which discuss copyright and fair use in the classroom.

• Copyright withCyberbee  
• Copyright: FairUse Practices for Students
• A Fair(y) UseTale (You Tube Video)

Creative Commons

Now that you have a better understanding of copyright and fair use, it is time to discuss Creative Commons.  Creative Commons began as a way for people to decide how they wanted their original works to be used and/or reproduced.  Through the use of six different licensing choices, artists are able to decide if anyone can use their material, if people can only use part of it, and what it can be used for.  The licenses also specify how much credit the artist or author would like to receive for their work.   Using pictures from websites like Flickr gives students access to a variety of pictures and videos which all use the Creative Commons attribution licenses.  Using sites like Flickr guarantees that students are honoring copyright and fair use in their work.

Click here to visit their website to learn more about Creative Commons.  Click Here to watch the video Wanna Work Together, a short 3:00 minute video which describes Creative Commons in detail.

Helping Students Understand it All

The video below, from Common Sense Educators, illustrates how one teacher taught her students about Copyright and Fair Use.  Watch this video and be prepared to discuss what you notice. (The following video is from You Tube.)

Assignment:

For your "Thing 10" blog post, you will need to address all of the following.  There are two parts to this post.  Make sure your answer contains all of the discussion points in order to receive credit for this activity.

Part 1 (1-2 paragraphs)

1. Discuss 2-3 things you learned about copyright, fair use, and creative commons. 
2. How will understanding these things help you when you are designing activities for your students to complete using the iPads?

Part 2 (2-3 paragraphs)

1. After watching the video from Common Sense Educators, what stuck out in your mind about how the teacher introduced copyright and fair use to her students?  
2. Why do you think the lesson had such an impact on her students? 
3. The teacher in the video reinforced critical thinking skills throughout this lesson by having the students support their answers and evaluations with evidence.  How does this strategy enhance the instruction taking place?
4. How could you implement a similar lesson with your students?  Think about who you would need to help you complete this lesson (campus Library Information Specialist, content specialists, etc.) and include this information in your response.