Copyright Rules and Insight
Learning about copyright rules, plagiarism, and fair use rules is not for the faint of heart. These laws and protections are the foundation that allows for progress in science and other creative works that creators put years of work and dedication to. Without the proper knowledge of how to use intellectual property appropriately, a user can easily rob a creator of credit and opportunity. These opportunities can be getting more readers or users to read or use their creations or even help educate others through their works. It’s important to protect these laws and individuals works because it’s the right thing to do but also the responsibility of digital citizenship.
With the digital world expanding, users need to be mindful of what there are using and how they are using it to keep the integrity of the original owners. To gain insight into this week’s readings and videos, it took a lot more time to really understand what was permissible to use and what was not, but also what can help learning in the manner that benefits everyone. To get a better understanding of copyright, materials that tangibly created such as book, movie, music, or tool are subject to copyright protection. By being tangible, these materials have been a concrete representation that one can see and touch (Muller, 2015).
Which goes to the fact that ideas are not copyrighted unless they are created. But also it’s allowed for users to take copyright material and manipulate it for the idea of progressing the world (Muller,2015). My father has used two different copyright materials, a water hose and tape to manipulate a whole new invention of his own. This invention was basically created to help a softball player visualize the strike zone and get a better hit with the ball. He takes a water hose, cuts it in half, and then uses duct tape or other tape material and wraps it to a ball and then tapes to the end of the hose. Then he swings it over his head to the softball player’s strike zone as they make contact with their bat.
This is taking two copyright materials and manipulating into a means that progresses the skills sets of all softball materials. When my sister became a little league coach, she asked my father’s permission to create this tool for her athletes. This unpublished piece of work is technically protected under copyright rules; therefore, my sister was right in asking for permission to use the same exact tool. If my father had created an application for this tool, any other resemblance of this tool would be copyright infringement if permission was not granted by my father. Although the material of the water hose and tape are copyright materials, the tangible tool created by my dad is the progression of those source materials since he manipulated them into another creation.
As an ELA teacher, I know what is considered as fair use when comes to an older piece of literature that is written by authors such as Shakespeare and Greek myths. These materials have become more so public domain. But using materials from current authors such as Angie Thomas or Rick Riordan, I would have to ask permission from those authors to use copy materials of their works unless it’s an excerpt that helps my students learning. That is when I am protected by the TEACH Act, the TEACH Act allows educators to use copyright material in a manner that promotes learning. Although the TEACH Act helps teacher, it’s important to understand what that entails from Copyright rule and TEACH Act which both are compromised for educational purposes (LSU Libraries, 2019).
To use Copyright materials is a lot of information to unpack, there is a better understanding of what is appropriately used to inappropriately use. To better assist this understanding, it’s important as a digital citizen to teach this to other digital learners, so that the benefit of using such materials is met with standards of respect and responsibility.
References
Bailey, J. (2013 October 7). The differences between copyright infringement and plagiarism.
infringement-plagiarism/
LSU Libraries (2019). TEACH in context. Retrieved from https://lib.lsu.edu/content/teach-
context
Muller, Stan. [user name: Crash Course] (2015 April 23). Crash course: introduction to
intellectual property: Crash course IP 1. Retrieved from:http://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=RQOJgEA5e1k
US Copyright Office. (2012). Copyright basics. Library of Congress. Retrieved from
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