POST #4: Copyright

I think that many areas of copyright law are confusing even after going through the module.  The publishing date, the amount of the material you use, and the type of work you are sharing all affect how much you can use.I have worked with our school librarian in the past on the topic of plagurism.  She developed a presentation that she shared with the students, and then gave access to all on the school server.  I am adamant that all sources be cited in terms of reference material.  After completing the tutorial on copyright I would have to say that generally I will feel most comfortable starting with the AEA resources first.  I feel that by doing so, I will be assured that as long as I limit the searches to the AEA resources, the copyright issue will be handled by the AEA.

Thank you for sharing your perspective on copyright as an author.  I think that your message should really "hit home" with all of us. Originators of work of any type have to make a living.

Like some of the other respondents, Google has been my best friend when needing resources for my classes. I didn't really think much about the items being copyrighted, I have just shown the videos or printed the worksheets. I have shown videos many times when a topic has come up that the kids were not familiar with to help them understand. I am thankful that it is acceptable to continue with this. I am glad that I can use the AEA online resources, and they have already filtered out what is ok for us to use.

Copyright can be confusing, but I found the Copyright Slider to be a really valuable tool to help decide whether permission is needed or not. I also wasn’t very familiar with the limitations to copyright as they were covered in the training. I plan to introduce the Fair Use Analytical Tool offered by University of Minnesota to my staff to help them with determining if something falls under Fair Use of not. Finally, I will begin using Creative Commons searches more often to help me use works that are intended to be shared.

After going thru this course.  I have very much better understanding about copyright laws. I was always afraid of using material cause of copyright.  Now that I have a better understanding about copyright laws.  I will be able to help students and teachers better.  I can guide them to use AEA resources.  I think many students don't understand about copyright.  Think it is very important part of technology that needs to be taught to students.  Also, I think teachers should be aware of the laws.  With going thru this course I feel I can explain better to them about it.  Guide them to use AEA resources.  Many students probably don't know these resources are their for them to use and they won't have to worry about copyright.  It's not as restricted as I thought.  Many times I found something I would of loved to use.  But, didn't cause of the copyright.  I don't think a few teachers are aware of what resources AEA has to offer.  

I recently took the Digital Citizenship class through AEA as well, so the copyright module was a good review of some of that material.  Before either of these courses, I knew a little about copyright law, such as the student may use 10% of the original work and not get into trouble.  I also knew students love to go to Google and that is their main source of searching.  I already feel that it is very important to teach the students how to properly search for good sources, and now I can include more of the AEA’s resources.  I already had them using Ebscohost, SIRS, and Gale, but now I will be including APimages, Soundzabound, and IClipart.  These sources are already credible and the students will not have to worry about breaking the law.  They will still need to learn how to cite the information and material correctly though!  Then again, that is my job to teach them how!!

I have never really used anything that has a copyright as I thought it was better to not use it and be safe than use it and be sorry.  After going through the copyright section, I have learned it is not as restrictive as I previously thought, however I still have some confusion.  There seems to be a lot of rules and then the exception to the rules.
I now feel comfortable going through AEA Online resources to get material. I know this has already been filtered and is available.  I think it is extremely important to teach kids about plagiarism and copyright law, as it is a tough concept for kids to grasp.  Even kids as old as fifth and sixth grade really struggle with this.  If we can start the conversation with the young students, the lesson will continue to build and carryover with the older kids.  I found the creative commons filter will be very helpful when I do Google searches.  

After completing the copyright module I am glad to know that a lot of the resources that I need and use are linked to the AEAonline and that I have a little sigh of relief that by using it I am not breaking any copyright laws. I am also glad that I know how to use the advanced google search and use the things that are safe to use. I do understand a lot more of copyright laws and feel a little more comfortable but there is so much under the copyright laws I am still worried about using things I shouldn't so I will continue to be cautious.  

Having completed the copyright module of this online course I have realized there are not as many copyright limitations as I had thought. From my understanding because the information is retrieved through AEA Online Resources that there is not really an issue with the copyright data because the screening has already been completed by AEA, but the copyright information is available if a question arises. I have been a substitute teacher since 2007. I have not had the opportunity to utilize the online media resources available to teachers so I have little to no experience with knowing what is copyrighted or not. Being a substitute teacher the material I use during teaching is already provided for me. Most of the time when I substitute I utilize books and copied worksheets, already provided for me. I guess I need to check to see if the worksheets are copyrighted or not. This brings up a question. Could I, as a substitute teacher, get in trouble for using materials that should not be utilized if they are left for me to use by the original teacher?

Before going through the copyright module, I really didn't have a great understanding of the copyright laws.  Many times I would be putting together a powerpoint presentation and find images on the internet then copy and past into my presentation without looking into copyright.  It is great to know that there are things that heartland offers to help teachers with this very touchy issue.

Previously I worked for my local school district in a grant position.  While working in this position I was required to take the online copyright review the start of each school year.  As I was reading the copyright module for this course, I saw similarities to the information in the copyright module.  I think the this course confirmed that using the AEA online resources is a great way to avoid any copyright 'issues'.  The AEA online resource is a safe way to look for the information that you need because you automatically know that you will not be violating any of the copyright laws.  I was also worried about copyright, but as I read and gained knowledge I was less worried and more educated.  I think it is imporant that people educate themselves about the copyright laws to erase some of the fear.  

After completing the copyright section i do have a better understanding.  I have always found copyright to be confusing.  Google and other search engines have made it so easy to just click and use that sometime you are not aware of the copyright. Google has been something that i have always used and now I will be paying more attention to things and will also be using the AEA resources more.

 I also think that its very important that we education out student on the topic of copyright.  I know that is something that does slip out thought as we search but it is a very important topic that need to be addressed every year with student.

After going through the module on copyright I came away being really impressed with what the AEA has done in this area.  I believe students have very little regard with the importance of copyrights.  As others stated in their posts it seems like students (and many adults/teachers) simply go to Google and feel like they can copy/paste anything they find there and use it.  I hope schools I work in would use AEA more so many copyright worries would be taken care of instead of just using Google.  I've always thought that as a teacher we do have a little more leeway with using materials as we are not profiting from its use.  There are restrictions, but we do have freedom in using previously published materials to enhance our lessons.  The beauty of using AEA resources is the AEA has taken care of any potential issues that may arise from using materials.  AEA has made it much easier for an educator.  We can use material from any of their resources and not be concerned about violating copyright laws.

After completing the copyright module, I had a better understanding of what I can and cannot use in the classroom.  It was a good refresher on the issue of copyright, since it has been a few years that I have had a class on it.  Also, I like the fact that AEA has gone through and filtered the online resources that are offered opposed to just using a random website.  I like knowing what I can use for my use verses the students use since going through this module.  Since I have gone through this module, I will also be looking at the things that are copied to use in my classroom either that I use as worksheets or online resources for my students.  I am very thankful that AEA offers a variety of online resources for educators to use, along with the fact, that they have filtered them to allow us as educators which is okay to use in the classroom.  

I think the copyright section of this course gives teachers a much more comfortable feeling of how much they can actually do when using the AEA resources.  We can get on Google all we want, but we really have to be careful when doing that.  The AEA has things already sorted and ready to go for us, so our job has been made much easier.  I now realize that something being copyrighted is not as restrictive as I had originally thought.  This is rarely an issue for me as a math teacher because most of our resources are already provided and we do not have to worry about making copies out of texts, but we still have to be aware of what we are allowed to copy and use in our classrooms.  This can be a scary topic and I am incredibly grateful to have a little more information on it after this course.

They copyright module was interesting.  I feel as though I understand copyright laws better now. The module help to clarify the digital copyright laws for me.  I feel comfortable with my students and myself using AEA online, knowing everything as been vetted for us.  I think teaching kids basic copyright laws would be a good idea.

After completing the copyright module I am very pleased to say that I can use AEA resources without any concern.  AEA has licenses with the products on here and made sure that all of their resources are credible.  When assisting a student with the digital resources from AEA I will not have to second guess if it is accurate information or not.  I will be able to review the instructions for copyright under the "terms and conditions" for myself and for the student under the "students" tab. I feel it is a privilege as an employee in an Iowa high school to be able to utilize these resources.

Okay, so up to this point my concern for copyright has been with movies.  Like I said in a prior post my needs are very simple as I deal mostly with elementary students.  Also is the cut and paste that students do with projects for classroom teachers.

I will be more versed when asked about these issues from colleagues.  But will have a handy brochure ready and Harriet on speed dial to answer any questions as well.  

Our recent copyright issue was with posting the AEA username and password on our website.  I really couldn't believe that was in violation of copyright policies.  It does make it difficult to get information out since everyone is getting so dependent on nonpaper communication.  

Copyright issues are complex.  Guess when there is a question whether it is meeting copyright law error on the side of caution.  One question a colleague had was changing formats of 'film' ... VHS to digital.  That is a no no.

I found this module to be interesting because I just finished a class and trying to fill out my cited work was extremely complicated.  There are so many things that we use today and what do we have the right to copy or not? It was definitely a questioned I had and I wish I would have taken this before I finished my last class.  I will utilize the AEA resources more often just for the simple fact that I will feel safer that I am covered for some copyright laws.  I do feel this is important to teach from a young age so that students feel comfortable developing there on work and not be tempted with all the resources we have at our fingertips.

As I was reading others posts, I as well felt some relief  when reading the Fair Use and Common Use sections that teachers have some leeway on their use of materials and rights in the classroom but that we still need to be aware where the lines are drawn for ourselves and our students.  Being good role model would probably be the best way to teach to ourselves and our students.  We need to also verbalize what we are doing and why we are doing it.

I feel that I have just discovered that I need reference material handy to look up answers to my ongoing questions regarding copyright. Most of the materials we question regarding copyright are covered by the blanket copyright permissions our school has in place. However, we are also covered by the educational use  of these materials. while working for Graceland University I was involved in making sure that video and audio copyright was not violated. the challenge most educators have is knowing when to ask the questions and who to ask. someone like the librarian needs to be a resident expert and teachers need to know who that is and use the them. I found the most of the students and faculty did not care and planned to plead dumb if confronted with their violations.  Not the right way to handle this issue. many educators are not serious enough about compliance with the rules. Seminars or training must be done with anyone who may use these materials, but at the least know who to talk to.