In dealing with academic honesty , I agree
with Dr. Siemens that we must “redefine cheating and plagiarism”
(Siemens, Plagiarism and Academic Honesty, 2009) due to the
instant and easy access to so many resources and information at our fingertips.
It would take every minute of the educator’s time to search through the
web for any sign of copying and my course will make it very difficult to find
infringements because many times, there is only one way to solve a specific
math problem so it would be nearly impossible to find any type of issues
dealing with plagiarism. Having knowledge of this fact should encourage
me to develop a course that can be engaging, shows connections to real life
situations, and gives the students opportunities to bring in personal
strategies and methods as they discuss and collaborate about
As
for copyright issues, I feel that the first level of the Creative Commons
License would be sufficient in many cases. In this license, the only
request is that any work used is attributed to the original author. Many
of the math problems that I create are built upon those that I have seen or
used in the past from books or resources online, and I try to give the credit
to the source. The schools system where I teach has a closed LMS so many
of us do not worry about our copyrights since we are only posting courses and
resources within our own database. However, we do have more strict and
specific copyright statements that require anyone who uses the collaborative
material from our district to gain permission prior to use outside of our district.
Copyright is becoming more and more of an issue due to the use of the
World Wide Web. With the introduction of so many online classes, the
instructors have an unlimited amount of resources from which to choose as they
develop and teach these classes. An entire lesson can be created through
the use of the cut and paste button, along with video clips, photos, and
interactive activities. On the other hand, these same teachers may also
experience issues regarding their own intellectual property rights as they may
run into problems with their employers (schools, colleges, universities…) in
trying to retain ownership and copyrights for that created material. It
becomes its own little circle as many teachers, especially those who instruct
online classes, experience issues with both of these processes. There are
solutions available to help combat these issues and all who participate should
be wary and careful to comply.
Educators can avoid copyright violations and legally use copyrighted
materials if they understand and comply with the fair use guidelines (Morrison,
2006). Of course, educators must know what copyright means. It is
defined as “a legal device that provides the creator of a work of art or
literature, or a work that conveys information or ideas, the right to control
how the work is used." The purpose of copyright is actually to
motivate authors to create new works or improve those they have created and
usually the motivation is economic. The increasing number of online courses and
use of the Internet in distance learning is redefining copyright protection
boundaries on intellectual property The copyright protections that we normally
associate with print also govern the use of audio, video, images, and text on
the Internet and the World Wide Web (WWW). The intuitive interface of the WWW
makes it easy for the computer user to copy and use images, text, video and
other graphics that are likely to be protected by copyright (Morrison, 2006).
Copyright issues are probably the least understood area in online
education (Bart, 2010). If copyrighted material is reproduced without the
permission of the owner, the violator can be liable for copyright infringement
(Kromrey, 2005). Many times, due to the ease of the cut and paste button,
educators are guilty of doing this because it saves time – not to get the
credit for the material. All should remember to be aware of this and take
the time required to follow the guidelines. Faculty members and
administrators involved with distance education need to understand the legal
ramifications of copyright infringement, intellectual property, online
defamation, online harassment and other key issues so that they can protect
themselves and their institution. Failure to do so can be costly—both
financially and in terms of damaged reputations (Bart, 2010).
Another issue facing educators these days are those involving
intellectual property rights, or work ownership issues. The increasing
use of online courses raises questions about the ownership of course materials
and can increase tensions between faculty members and their universities
regarding rights and responsibilities associated with online courses (Kromrey,
2005). The increasing number of online courses and use of the Internet in
distance learning is redefining copyright protection boundaries on intellectual
property (Morrison, 2006). The General Rule about property ownership
allows for the ‘incidental use of college property,’ where you create something
at the school, just using your office and computer, then, you actually own all
the rights to those materials (Bart 2010). Many institutions feel that if
the works are created with their resources, then intellectual property rights
belong in part to them. Planning ahead for this issue might prevent legal
issues later after course development. The American Association of University
Professor’s (AAUP) position on copyright ownership states that the faculty
member creating the work is actually the owner, but that there are
circumstances that give the school or university a claim to co-ownership rights
(Kromrey, 2005).
According to Alger, "The institution or school must take care when
intellectual property created by the staff is intermingled with the
intellectual property created by an outside vendor"(2007). There are many
online issues involving intellectual property rights when an educator develops
a course in conjunction with the use of a packaged or third-party source.
It can become a problem for the institution, the third-party, and the
educator if guidelines are not spelled out in advance, preferably in writing.
However, though issues are common, there are many solutions and places
available to find these solutions and rules. Make sure all copyrighted
material is removed from non-password-protected areas on the school or district
Web site (Davidson). The online instructor's contract should
specify who has the rights to the intermingled intellectual property and to
create and use derivative works (Bart, 2010). Alger advises educators to
keep a good paper trail of copyright permissions for works used in online
education. Be especially vigilant when working with outside vendors on
course content (2002).
Under U.S. law, faculty and students have rights to use copyrighted
intellectual property for educational (non-profit) activities called "fair
use" rights. The University of St. Francis in Illinois has collected
information on various topics related to fair use. Its selection includes
some issues which may be of particular interest to Technology Source readers,
such as the rules governing use of audiovisual aids and materials for distance
education. The State University of New York at Albany has compiled
guidelines for fair use of copyrighted works by educators and students.
Specific topics addressed on the site include: the four factors involved in
determining fair use, how to get permission to make copies of copyrighted
material, guidelines for electronic lists and discussions, and citations for
readings on current copyright law. Stanford University Libraries have
established a Web reference about copyright and intellectual property norms and
legal issues. The site provides links to judicial and legislative law and
standards, and offers information about the current status of pending copyright
actions (Morrison, 2006).
In conclusion, these issues are not going anywhere because the use of
online resources and online education is increasing exponentially.
Educators can avoid copyright violations and legally use copyrighted
materials if they understand and comply with the fair use guidelines (Morrison,
2006). If educators, institutions, third-party sources take the time
prior to releasing works, or hiring employees to write those works, then many
of these issues could be eliminated or lessened. In many cases, time is a
factor and the ease with which the material can be copied and pasted into
lessons is causing many issues. Copyright is economically motivational,
intellectual property rights are security motivational, and solutions are there
if all parties would simply take care to read and abide by the guidelines.
References
Alger,
Jonathan R. (April 17, 2002). Legal Issues in Online Education. In
Educause. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/NTW0204.pdf.
Bart,
Mary. (October 18, 2010). Intellectual Property, Copyright, and
Harassment: Navigating the Murky Legal Waters of Online Teaching. In Faculty
Focus. Retrieved November 21, 2010,
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/intellectual-property-copyright-and-harassment-navigating-the-murky-legal-waters-of-online-teaching/
Davidson,
Hall. (n.d.) Copyright Guidelines for Administrato rs. In
Technology & Learning. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
http://www.techlearning.com/techlearning/pdf/supplements/CopyrightGuide20050
Siemens, G.
(Producer). (2009). Copyright Models [Video Webcast]. Retrieved from Walden
University.
Siemens, G.
(Producer). (2009). Plagarism and Academic Honesty [Video Webcast]. REtrieved
from Walden University.
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