How can I use copyrighted materials in the classroom?

The BASICS:

• Use lawfully acquired copies of materials, (e.g., items you or the institution purchased, obtained through interlibrary loan, or licensed). Do not use pirated or illegally copied materials.
• Even if you are permitted to use the works, include copyright notices on any copyrighted materials you use.
• In general, it is a good idea to use only the amount of a work that is needed to achieve your pedagogical goals.

The SPECIFICS:

Besides obtaining the copyright owner’s permission to use the work, the U.S Copyright Law provides two options that allow professors to use materials in the classroom:

• 110(1) Exemption: There is a special exemption in the U.S. Copyright Law that applies to face-to-face teaching. This is a situation where the professor is physically present in a classroom or similar place devoted to instruction and is using the materials in the context of a discrete class session. Under § 110(1), faculty and students may only perform or display – but not reproduce or distribute – any copyrighted work in the course of face-to-face teaching activities in a classroom, without seeking permission. If this provision doesn’t meet your needs, you can see if a case can be made for fair use (see below).

Examples of classroom performances of non-dramatic music or literary works:
Group of students sings an arrangement of a Beetles’ song in class as part of the lesson plan.
Professor does a reading from a chapter of a novel in class as part of the lesson plan.

• Fair Use: Materials may be used for teaching (including creation of multiple copies) as well as for purposes such as criticism, comment, and news reporting by applying a four factor analysis. You must weigh each factor and assess the overall impact of your use. Meeting a single factor will not suffice; similarly, failing one does not necessary mean you cannot use fair use.

The four factors to consider are:

• Purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes.
  Non commercial and educational uses are favored over commercial ones. Transformative uses (e.g., those that use works to create something new) are favored. Fair use of a work intended for an educational market such as a workbook may be less favored.
  Example of transformative use: Professor includes portions of copyright works in a multimedia presentation for a class.
• Nature of the work. Factual works are favored in fair use decisions over use of highly creative works. In general, published works are favored over unpublished works.
• Amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the work as a whole. Use is more likely to be considered fair for small quantities, where the portion used is not significant to the entire work, and where the amount is appropriate for the intended educational purpose.
• Effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the work. Factors favoring fair use are use of lawfully acquired or purchased copies of the original works, a small number of copies made, no similar product is marketed by copyright holder, and there is a lack of a licensing mechanism. Factors arguing against fair use are repeated long term use and making materials widely available as on the Web.

Fair Use is not a blanket exemption to copyright law.

Rather, it must be judged on a case by case basis. In an effort to simplify the process of determining whether a classroom use was a fair one, a set of Guidelines for Classroom Copying of Books and Periodicals was agreed upon by a group of authors and publishing organizations.

In addition, you should review the University’s “Policy on Reproduction of Copyrighted Works “.as to using copyrighted works.

Scenario

A professor rents a DVD of the film Hotel Rwanda from a local video store to show in her class on African History. The disc is labeled For Home Use Only. Is this use permitted?

This use falls within the 110(1) exemption of the U.S. Copyright Law that permits a classroom viewing in the context of a class session. Public performances of the video to a campus club would not be covered. Showing the same DVD to the class by “streaming” it through a Blackboard site is not covered by this exemption and certain criteria would need to be met to deliver the material in that fashion (see Blackboard section)

 

Copyright Index

Copyright Liability