One myth about fair use is "fair use is too unclear and complicated for me; it's better left to lawyers and administrators." Finding pictures and researching on the Internet has become the number one way students research for papers/projects. I know most teachers or professors go over fair use policy and how to cite information before beginning research. Most students know how to do this, but some do not do it properly. I still get confused how how to site information in a paper! I think in high school, and maybe even as early as middle school, there should be a class, or standards, devoted to how to research properly or how to cite references properly. It doesn't have to be complicated. I remember I dreaded citing my references at the end of a paper more than I did to write it! If we are taught at an early age to use fair use properly, it could make paper-writing, or researching, a enjoyable experience.
Myth #2 is "employing fair use is too much trouble, I don't want to fill out any forms." My husband is a co-host of the Georgia Dugout Club Conference for high school baseball in Atlanta every year. He was in charge of making the programs and running slide shows for presenters. As he was making the program, he wanted to showcase the coaches of schools who were presenting and wanted to use the school's logo. He contacted the athletic offices asking permission to use the logo. He wasn't really sure where to start, so he decided to start with the athletic office. All it took was a quick e-mail explaining what he was doing and it was a quick reply back, "yes!" Employing fair use does not have to be complicated, it can be as simple as a friendly, quick e-mail.
It's great that your blog help to uncomplicated some of the fears regarding fair use and copyright laws. The simplicity of reaching out to gain permission for use is great and I think it is often just that simple. Teaching young students how to correctly conduct research as well as how to cite information is a great way in educating students about copyright and fair use laws.
ReplyDeleteFair Use is a great way to teach students about respecting the rights of others and the importance of not just using it for their own. I feel the same way you do sometimes when I am trying to figure out how to properly site these things in a paper, so the more we understand it the better we will be at explaining it to others. I think that our recent media festival was a great way to teach this to the kiddos when they were putting their projects together. It made them think about where they were getting the pictures and information from and who was to be given the proper credit. All of the projects fell under the fair use policy but just in case, we did have to discuss about the possibility of contacting someone to gain permission if needed. It was one of those teachable moments for sure!
ReplyDeleteI had to chuckle when reading your blog - I still dread citing my references more than writing the paper. Takes me about as long to complete that "References" page as it does to do the research!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great example of easily obtaining permission! Very encouraging in the murky waters of copyright law...