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By Sarah Kawata

FAIR USE AND


COPYRIGHT FOR
TEACHERS

What is Fair Use?

Fair use is a legal doctrine that promotes freedom of


expression by permitting the unlicensed use of copyrightprotected works in certain circumstances. (More
Information on Fair Use)
If you were to use an authors work and they do not think
you have used fair use they are able to file a lawsuit against
you and take you to court which could lead to you having
to pay them damages (Fair Use-Copyright Overview)
This means there are certain things we can do with
copyrighted works such as using works for educational
purposes, reporting on the works, using those works for
research, commentary, criticism etc.

Copyright and Fair Use Video

https://youtu.be/suMza6Q8J08
This video talks about all of the things
covered in this presentation in a short visual
video form.

http://www.theedublogger.com/files/2012/02/google-243lfpw.jpg

Four Factors

1.
2.
3.

4.
.

The Purpose and Character of the Use


The Nature of the Copyrighted Work
The Amount and Substantiality of the Portion
Used in Relation to the Copyrighted Work as a
Whole
The Effect of the Use Upon the Potential Market
for or Value of the Copyrighted Work
All of these factors tie into one another and when
courts are deciding if fair use was considered they
will look at all of these factors together to make a
decision. It is on a case by case basis.

http://www.resourcesforlife.com/wp/wpcontent/uploads/2012/11/20121124sacopyright-fair-use-diagram-fiveaspects-chart.jpg

Factor 1

The Purpose and Character of the Use (More Information on


Fair Use)
This means what the work is being used for, ex.- nonprofit
educations, noncommercial uses, or commercial uses (More
Information on Fair Use)
Is something new created, there needs to be some
transformation of the work (Fair Use- Copyright Overview)
The purpose and character refer to what the works are being
used for and if they are being used for purposes okayed under
fair use.
Some questions to ask when considering factor 1 are: am I
creating something new or did I copy it word for word? How is
my insight added to make it new and meaningful to me?

Factor 2

The Nature of the copyrighted work (More


Information on Fair Use)
Referring to creative expression, factual work is
more likely to be considered fair use (More
Information on Fair Use)
The example the article gave was if you use a
more creative or imaginative work it may be less
likely to support fair use than if you were to use a
more factual work which may be more likely to
support fair use (More Information on Fair Use).

Factor 3

The amount and substantiality of the portion used in


relation to the copyrighted work as a whole (More
Information on Fair Use)
This depends on the amount of copyright work used, a big
amount or a small amount (More Information on Fair Use)
This also depends on the part you are taking, if you take the
meat of the work and use it, there is an increased chance of
problems occurring (Fair Use- Copyright Overview). This is
because you are taking the most important part of the work
or the moral of the story and using it, that is the part that is
most memorable to the work and that stands out most, you
did not make it your own, you took it from someone else.

Factor 4

The effect of the use upon the potential market for or


value of the copyrighted work (More Information on
Fair Use)
This is the determining of whether the use of the
copyright work could create a situation where there
would be no need for this work in the current market
and whether it would have an effect if it were to become
widespread (More Information on Fair Use)
This means making it hard for the original author to make
money off of their work or creating a whole new market
based on what you have taken from their work and
created yourself (Fair Use- Copyright Overview)

Examples of Fair Use

Quoting a few lines from a song


Creating a news report
Using a few paragraphs for teaching
purposes, lesson plans
These are all things in which the public can
benefit from what you are reporting or
reviewing

Fair Use for Educators

These are some things in which educators can use that


usually are okay to copy:
A chapter from a book (Starr)
an excerpt from a work that combines language and

illustrations no more than 2 pages or 10% (Starr)


A poem, 250 words or less (Starr)
an article, short story, or essay of 2,500 words or less (Starr)
One chart, graph, diagram, cartoon or picture (Starr)

These are not guaranteed standards to go by because if


an author doesnt agree with how you used their work
they can make a claim against you.

Not Fair Use for Educators

More than one copy of a work to use instead


of a book (Starr)
Make copies of the same work to use for more
than one semester or class (Starr)
Copy the same work more than nine times in
a single semester (Starr)
Using work for commercial purposes (Starr)
Using the work without giving credit to the
author (Starr)

How To Avoid Copyright Violations

Use public domain resources whenever possible


(Starr). These resources are created by the Federal
Government and are for public use
Work with other teachers to come up with public
domain materials for educational use (Starr). By
doing this you will have a list of resources you can
use without having to worry about violating
copyrights.
Ask permission for yourself in order to use someone
elses work and teach your students to do the same
(Starr)

Teachers and Multimedia Projects

Projects containing original work and work from others (copyright) can be
used:
Face-to-face instruction (Starr)
Students can use for their own studying (Starr)
real-time remote instruction (Starr)
Teaching a chosen course for up to two years after the presentation was first made and

presented by the teacher (Starr)


Peer workshops and conferences with other teachers and professionals (Starr)
Personal use- job interviews, etc. (Starr)
You must give credit to the author whom you used their work as well as acknowledge
the copyright they have (Starr)
You also must state on the opening screen and on any accompanying print material a
notice that certain materials are included under the fair use exemptionand have been
prepared according to the multimedia fair use guidelines and are restricted from further
use. (Starr).

By doing these things you will be helping yourself, as a teacher, avoid


violating copyrights and fair use.

Sources

Fair Use - Copyright Overview by Rich Stim - Stanford


Copyright and Fair Use Center. (n.d.).
Retrieved September 23, 2015, from
http://fairuse.stanford.edu/overview/fair-use/
More Information on Fair Use| U.S. Copyright Office.
(n.d.). Retrieved September 23, 2015, from http://
copyright.gov/fair-use/more-info.html
Starr, L. (n.d.). Education World: Is Fair Use a License
to Steal?. Retrieved September 23, 2015, from
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr280b.shtml

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