Fair Use and the TEACH Act (Create 3.1.2)

All educators need to honor copyrights laws when selecting material to use in class.  The reason that honoring copyright law and having a solid understanding of the Fair Use clause and the TEACH (Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization) Act is so very important for online educators is because the work that online educators do in the classroom can be easily viewed by anyone.  Online educators are often under increased scrutiny because they work in public forums.

Obviously, professionalism and ethics dictate that a teacher in a traditional brick and mortar school should adhere to copyright laws, and most teachers do respect these regulations.  But the reality is that some do not, and when they don't--when they make photocopies of an entire workbook instead of purchasing the book for students or when they show a film solely for entertainment to a group of students--the danger of them being caught and punished for their actions is not as great simply because classroom teachers are more isolated.  If an online teacher egregiously or inadvertently violates copyright laws, however, they leave a digital trail and are therefore more at risk.  No teacher should ever violate these copyright laws, to be clear, but online educators need to be extra careful to adhere to the law.

Teachers can use Open Educational Resources of Creative Common sites to locate resources to use in the classroom, and depending on the licensures of those resources, can use this access and these materials to enhance delivery of content and student learning.  By understanding and abiding by Fair Use and the TEACH act, teachers can continue to seek out resources for their classrooms.  Having to work within certain restrictions is a small price to pay for having access to the wealth of information available on the web.