Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Plagiarism has been my main concern about students using the Internet for projects. Copyright? Hadn't given it much thought until this lesson. Wow! Where have I been? Of course, we have to know and explain copyright because it's a legal issue one has to respect and abide by. And, like technology, the law is evolving. It's exciting to learn about sites like Creative Commons, which can help you find the photos, text, and images that can be used for free. It's like a whole new world has opened up for me! Duh!
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Hi, Joy--I'm glad we're addressing copyright in class, too. Coming from the book publishing world, it's always on my mind when I use images from the Internet, but most people don't think about it because it's so easy to copy and paste. The education world is particularly tricky with copyright, because there is much more allowance for free use than in other disciplines. If it's going to be used to educate people, the content shouldn't cost anything because it's for the greater good, right?
ReplyDeleteI think there's a general feeling out there now that everything should be free. I listened to a podcast in which the teachers tiraded about having to pay for research databases. What doesn't get talked about is why copyright is there--to compensate the creators for their work, so they can afford to make more. I was going to mention this in class last week, but didn't want to seem like an evil capitalist or some such. But I think it's important to remember why we have to abide by copyright, not just that it's a rule to follow.
Coming out of the news industry, I also share your opinion. We pay for photos and articles because they literally have "value," which goes beyond a monetary figure. To say that it ought to be free, or copied without sourcing it, is dismissing the cultural importance of those who have the ability to communicate messages that enable us to see life differently, grasp a concept previously misunderstood or overlooked. In that sense, teachers need to help students learn to discriminate, evaluate, and respect what's on the Internet that's worth something, because it's not all the same. Open access is here to stay, so creating consumers who pay tribute to the original source matters!
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