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In the past, educators may have knowingly or unknowingly broken copyright law and, until now, gotten away with it. Today, with the increasing use of the Internet by teachers and students, teachers need to be aware of and follow all copyright and fair use laws, especially since we should be setting a good example for our students. Teachers must take the responsibility of teaching their students an understanding of the copyright laws and fair use guidelines. Students should understand that this is to protect the rights of the creators. Besides teaching civic responsibility, we are also morally responsible for teaching ethical responsibility. We must model the use of ethical and legal responsibility, honesty and truthfulness. The taking and/or using of another's property or work without permission is stealing. Educators and schools DO get 'caught' and can be fined anywhere from hundreds to a hundred thousand dollars or more for each infraction of the law. "Ignorance" of the law is not an excuse. To follow is an outline of Copyright Law and Fair Use Guidelines to help you understand what is and what is not allowable in the school setting. Below are links to pages of information we have collected in an attempt to educate ourselves on the responsible use of copyrighted items. |
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