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Copyright Quick Guide

 

Scope

 

Copyright applies to an “original work of the authorship” that is fixed in any tangible medium of expression. Copyright applies to any qualifying work published or not published and created in the U.S. or most any other country in the world.

 

Guideline

  • To copy any material, the college must own the material.
  • Fair use or practice is utilization of a portion (rule of thumb is 7/10%) of a copyrighted work for educational purposes. However, there is controversy about the fair use practice. For more information, see the Fair-Use Statute Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976.
  • Fair use copies must be cited--the source must be credited even for pictures downloaded or scanned as well as any paraphrasing or quoting from the document or website.


These guidelines are intended to provide the reader with assistance in understanding what can and cannot be used for educational purposes with or without copyright permission.


For more detailed information, access this website:
http://www.copyright.gov/


Facts: The copyright owner is usually the person who creates the original work unless it is created “for hire,” then the copyright belongs to the employer. Most copyrights last through the life of the creator, plus 10 years. Works published before 1978 are protected for 95 years.


In the Copyright Revision Act of 1976, Section 107 establishes guidelines for teachers, librarians, and other educational instructors. The guidelines embody three standards: brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect. These guidelines are a minimum, and in special circumstances, may be exceeded under the rubric of fair use. These recommendations are in keeping with our mission to be facilitators in the educational process while remaining in the “safe harbor” of U.S. copyright law.


Faculty Copies:

    • Multiple copies are never to exceed more than one copy per pupil in a course.
    • Copying shall not be used to create, replace, or be substituted for anthologies, compilations, and other collective works.
    • No charge beyond the actual cost of the copying is charged to the students.
    • Copying does not substitute for the purchase of books, periodicals, publisher reprints etc.
    • Copying shall not be repeated with respect to the same item by the same teacher from term to term.
    • Copying cannot be directed by a higher authority.
    • Copying of, or from a work is not intended to be “consumable” in the course of studying or teaching. These include workbooks, exercises, standardized tests, test booklets, answer sheets etc.
    • Copying meets the test of brevity as defined below:
      • Poetry
        A poem must be 250 words or less and/or no longer than two pages. Only an excerpt of 250 words or less may be used for a longer poem.
      • Prose
        An article, story or essay must be less than 2,500 words or an excerpt of a longer work may not exceed 1,000 words or be more than 10% of the actual work.
      • Illustration
        Only one chart, diagram, drawing, cartoon, or picture can be used per book or periodical issue.
      • Special Work
        A unique or special work is not to exceed 2,500 words. An excerpt of a work must not be longer than two published pages and/or 10% of that work.
    • Copying meets the test of spontaneity as defined below:
      The copying is at the instance or inspiration of the individual teacher, and the inspiration and decision to use the work and the moment of its use for maximum teaching effectiveness are so close in time that it would be unreasonable to expect a timely reply to a request for permission to use the material.
    • Copying meets the test of cumulative effect as defined below:
      • The copying of the material is for only one course in the school.
      • Not more than one short poem, article, essay, story or two excerpts may be copied from the same author, nor more than three from the same collective work or periodical volume during one class term.
      • There shall not be more than nine instances of such multiple copying for one course during one class term.


        This help sheet is based on U.S Copyright law & recommended guidelines./ October 2002 © j.gores (Waukesha County Technical College)


    To test the fair use policy access these sites.

     

Other Resources

    Books and Videos
    Use the Moraine Park Catalog to find books, e-books, and videos on this subject.


    Databases
    Use the following databases to find articles on this topic.


    Westlaw Campus Contains legal information such as state statutes, federal code and regulations, legal encyclopedia, reports.


    Ebsco
    Contains articles from over 5000 magazines and journals covering a wide variety of topics.

     

Other Websites

 

Updated 10/2009
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