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Section 4. The Five Principles of the Code

Learning Objectives

Students will understand:

  • that the Code of Best Practices offers a model for educators and students to assert the value of fair use in education
  • how to use the Code of Best Practices to strengthen reasoning skills and increase confidence about the use of copyrighted materials in the development of critical thinking and communication skills
  • how to use case studies, videos and other tools to guide the process of teaching and learning about fair use and applying the Code of Best Practices to specific situations

Materials

Video: Overview of the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education

Case Study videos (all videos are available at www.mediaeducationlab.com/)

Copies of the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education

Copies of the attached PDF, Section 4, Five Principles, (with Hypothetical Scenarios)

Readings

Reading (A), (B) (C): Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education, available at www.mediaeducationlab.com

The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education asserts educators' and learners' rights to use copyrighted materials for teaching and learning. The Code maintains that:

Educators can, under some circumstances:

1. Make copies of newspaper articles, TV shows, and other copyrighted works, and use them and keep them for educational use.

2. Create curriculum materials and scholarship with copyrighted materials embedded.

3. Share, sell, and distribute curriculum materials with copyrighted materials embedded.

Learners can, under some circumstances:

4. Use copyrighted works in creating new material.

5. Distribute their works digitally if they meet the transformativeness standard

Lesson Plan

Engage interest. Show the video, "Overview" and invite students to make connections between what they have learned in previous lessons and ideas from the video.

Read and discuss. Read the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education. To promote reading comprehension, invite students to work with a partner to (1) explain the rationale provided for why educators can benefit from the Code. Make sure students can (2) explain why each of the five principles has a description, a justification and a set of limitations to consider.

View and discuss video case studies. Select one of the case study videos to view and discuss. To develop an understanding of the assertions, conditions and limitations of the five principles described in the Code, use the video case study questions below to stimulate discussion:

Video Case Study: NYC Elementary School

1. Do you agree with the teacher that the use of music in these PSAs was a transformative use? Why or why not?

2. Why do you think these students chose to use copyrighted works in their videos? Why didn't they use royalty-free music? Why do you think they chose a picture of a Cadillac instead of a generic car image with no logo?

3. Do you think the students should have given credit to the original creators of the images they used in their videos? The students used Google Images -- how would they find out who the original creator is?

4. Which of the five principles are relevant in this case? What evidence supports your answer?

Video Case Study: Upper Merion High School

1. If you were the photographer who posted these Flickr images, how would you feel about students using them in the Virtual Zoo?

2. Why do you think the educators in this case study felt it was important to post these images online instead of sharing them just within their class? Do you think they should have posted it to a password-protected site instead? Why or why not?

3. In this video, the teachers instructed students to do a Creative Commons search within Flickr. Why do you think they included this step? Why didn't they encourage students to use Google Images to find images? When would it be OK to use Google images to search for materials?

4. Which of the five principles are relevant in this case? What evidence supports your answer?

Video Case Study: Ithaca College Project Look Sharp

1. Why do you think Newsweek told Project Look Sharp to get permission from the photographers and the subjects of the photos?

2. Do you think it makes a difference whether or not Project Look Sharp makes money from selling their curriculum materials? Why or why not?

3. In this video, the copyrighted images were used for purposes of critique and analysis. Would it make a difference to you if the images were used for purposes of illustration? Why or why not?

4. Which of the five principles are relevant in this case? What evidence supports your answer?

 

As you discuss these cases, encourage students to use reasoning and evidence, reviewing the conditions and limitations of the Code to understand the considerations which limit fair use.

Discuss hypothetical cases. Break students into six groups and pass out copies of the attached PDF file,  W4: Hypothetical Scenarios.  Encourage students to discuss the cases in ways that include diverse points of view.

You might want to give students in each group a specific role to play, including the rights owner, the student, the teacher, or other stakeholders.

Point out that different people may employ different criteria in making a judgment about the meaning of the concepts of "re-purpose" and "add value."  Fair use is an interpretation and reasonable people will sometimes disagree about what constitutes a fair use. The goal is to use reasoning and analysis in reflecting on both the rights of the copyright owner and the rights of the user.

WRITING ACTIVITY. Students write an email offering advice to the teacher described in each case, explaining why their particular use described is (or is not) a fair use.  Encourage students to use reasoning that reflects their understanding of fair use and a consideration of the principles and limitations found in the Code of Best Practices.

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