Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Teaching Copyright Laws and Issues


Copyright is a reality we face in this time when technology makes it easy to steal others' ideas. We must oue teach students to not only be familiar with what copyright law restricts, but also what it allows in regard to "fair use". Students need to be aware that just because a page doesn’t have the © symbol, doesn’t mean it’s not copyrighted; almost everything on the Web is copyrighted.

Under the Foundations strand of the Texas Technology Standards, students are expected to

(A) discuss copyright laws/issues and model ethical acquisition and use of digital information, citing sources using established methods, and

C) describe the consequences regarding copyright violations including, but not limited to, computer hacking, computer piracy, intentional virus setting, and invasion of privacy;

I found the following interactive website helpful in teaching grade 6th-8th students about Copyright laws/issues and Fair Use. http://www.stfrancis.edu/cid/copyrightbay/

Check out the Citation Machine which is more appropriate for high school and university level students who need assistance with citing their research sources.

This is a great video from Teacher Tube on the topic: http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=628442b3d4dc00fca434

If you plan is for one year, plant rice;If you plan is for ten years, plant trees;If your plan is for a hundred years, educate children.
-Confucius

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