Contact Helpdesk

TECHNOLOGY ENHANCED TEACHING

copyright


College of the North Atlantic is committed to offering high-quality courses that respect the intellectual property of others.


What is Copyright?

If you invent or create something, it’s considered your intellectual property. Intellectual property law encompasses two areas - industrial property (which applies primarily to inventions and patents) and copyright.

Copyright law is the component of intellectual property law that deals primarily with literary and artistic works. This includes (but is not limited to) music, books and other text forms, paintings, photography, sculpture, film, websites, and computer programs.

Copyright refers to the legal right to reproduce, publish or sell a literary work and is considered the sole right of the creator or author. Copyright law is designed to protect the owner of a work against unfair use, such as copying, re-distributing or otherwise using the work without permission. Copyright ownership is automatically conferred upon creation. A work does not need to have the copyright symbol applied to it to be protected under the law.

Source: Adapted from materials at World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)


The Canadian Copyright Act and Fair Dealing

The Canadian Copyright Act makes it clear that copyright conveys the sole right to produce, reproduce, perform or publish a work to the creator of the work. Exceptions allowed under the Act are referred to as Fair Dealing. Education, research and private study are just three of the exceptions permitted under Fair Dealing.

There are a number of factors to consider when deciding if the use you plan to make of copyrighted content meets fair dealing requirements including; the purpose and character of the copying, the proportion and importance of the copied portion of the work, the availability of alternatives to the work, whether the work is published or unpublished, and whether or not copying will compete with the commercial market of the original work.

Source: Adapted from materials on Fair Dealing Requirements at UBC


Using Copyrighted Works for Educational Purposes

Most of us instinctively recognize that books and novels are vehicles for holding the author’s (copyrighted) creation. We understand that when we purchase a book, whether it is a novel or a textbook, we purchase only the right to read it. We have no rights to copy, change or sell the author’s work. CDs and DVDs are to be treated the same as books. The CD or DVD is only the container for the media it contains. We purchase the right to enjoy the contents of the CD/DVD - but we have no rights to copy, change or sell its contents. We should similarly think of the internet and all of its sites as a giant container that holds text, images, audio, video, apps, and more. It is not a copyright free zone.

Often, we get a bit confused when we see things seemingly freely available on the internet. We can click and download them with ease. Sometimes we’re even invited to download them. However, we can’t re-use those items unless we take the proper measures to ensure we are not violating intellectual property ethics and copyright law.

If a work is in the public domain, it is not restricted by copyright and is free to use without permission. If a work is not in the public domain, then you must seek permission to use the material through one of the following ways:

  • Creative Commons (CC) licensing.
    Individuals and organizations that support CC licensing will have a CC licence displayed on their work describing exactly how it may be used. To get a better understanding of how Creative Commons Licensing works, watch the video, Creative Commons: Get Creative




  • 'Fair dealing' or other exceptions to the Copyright Act for educational use.
    For example, exception 30.04 allows instructors to reproduce internet materials for educational use, if:
    • you acknowledge the author and the source website,
    • the material appears to have been posted legitimately (i.e. with the consent of the copyright owner),
    • there is no clearly visible notice or link to such a notice prohibiting you from using the material for educational purposes, and
    • tthere is no technological protection measure preventing you from accessing or copying the material (e.g. it’s not on a password protected website).
       
  • Written permission from the copyright holder.
    If you want to use a substantial portion of a work and are unsure if you're going beyond the reasonable application of 'fair dealing', it is best to request permission from the copyright holder (organization or individual) in writing. Once written permission has been received, materials may be used as long as they are properly sourced and attributed.

See CNA’s copyright poster [PDF] for a visual summary of ways to avoid copyright infringement. Another great resource is the publication Copyright Matters! Some Key Questions & Answers for Teachers, 3rd edition.


Other Copyright Resources


Top