01W-Heather Smith-Unit3-Copyright and Fair Use

As stated by Title 17 of the United States Code, copyright is defined as “a law meant to

protect original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression” (U.S. Copyright

Office, 2020) Copyright is the legal rights to your own creative work. Just as your creative work

can be copyrighted and protected so is the work of others. There is a broad spectrum of works

that are protected under copyright such as music, literature, art/drawings, songs, and many more.

A common misconception is that some things are in the public domain, meaning they are free to

use by anyone. Once something is copyrighted that “protection lasts for the life of the author plus

an additional 70 years”.

There is an exemption to the copyright law that allows for educational use. The exception

to the right is also referred to as fair use. Fair use allows students and teachers to use some

copyrighted materials for educational purposes only. Use of copyrighted material must be

deemed fair use by determining if it meets the four statutory requirements. The four statutory

factors that should be used to determine fair use are: “purpose and character of the use, nature of

the original work, amount and substantiality of the portion used, and effect of the use on the

potential market for a value of the source work”(University of Minnesota libraries, n.d.).

There is a plethora of guidelines for fair use for educational purposes. Some of the

popular uses of copyrighted materials in a classroom are, but not limited to, copying materials,

displaying photographs, showing videos or motion pictures, newspaper articles, reproducing

chapters from a book, and many more (Middlesex Community College, n.d.). As long as these

materials are used within the classroom and fair use guidelines, they are all acceptable. Teachers

must always keep in mind to use their sources lawfully, spontaneously, and kept to a minimum.

Dealing with copyright laws and fair use guidelines is another uneasy task that teachers must pay
close attention to. If ever a teacher is unsure about whether or not the material they are using is

under copyright and within fair use guidelines, they should check to see if they need permission.

It is always better to err on the safe side and check for copyright permissions. With copyright and

fair use…. When in doubt double-check it out.

References

U.S. Copyright Office. (2020, June) Copyright law of the United States Retrieved from

https://www.copyright.gov/title17/

In-text citation: (U.S. Copyright Office, 2020)

University of Minnesota libraries. (n.d). Understanding fair use. Retrieved from

https://www.lib.umn.edu/copyright/fairuse

In-text citation: (University of Minnesota libraries, n.d.)

Middlesex Community College. (n.d.). Exemptions.Retrieved from

https://www.middlesex.mass.edu/copyright/exemptions.aspx

In-text citation: (Middlesex Community College, n.d.)