Technology & Learning - May 2008 - (Page 28)

taking into consideration the following criteria: Learn More For additional information about digital literacy and copyright issues check out the below Web-based resources. Creative Commons http://creativecommons.org elearnspace www.elearnspace.org/ Information Behaviour of the Researcher of the Future www.bl.uk/news/2008/ pressrelease20080116.html Information Literacy www.information-literacy.net JakesOnline.Org http://jakesonline.org Landmarks for Schools http://landmark-project.com Media Awareness Network www.media-awareness.ca • the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; • the nature of the copyrighted work; • the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and • the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. ■ Barring some drastic redefinition or legal precedent, fair use does not apply to educational materials posted on the public Internet for others to access and redistribute at will. ■ The copyright holder can always choose to grant to others some or all rights to their work. Learning to share Creative Commons provides a powerful tool for students and teachers in today’s digital universe. CC licenses allow authors to specify which rights they are granting the general public— such as the right to copy, make derivative works, distribute the work, or make money from it—and how they want to be credited for it. An understanding of Creative Commons not only allows students to determine the conditions under which they want to share their own work but also gives them an understanding of the legal and ethical issues involved in reusing the work of others in situations that do not qualify as fair use. It transforms copyright from an abstract concept, or one that is seen as protecting big commercial producers, to a set of less restrictive rules that allow for the free sharing of creative content and ideas online. While digital materials circulated via e-mail or posted at sites such as YouTube frequently lack adequate information about the copyright holder, CC licensing—with the attribution requirement that typically accompanies it—is raising new awareness about the importance of identifying and citing one’s sources. Fortunately, a number of media sharing tools, including Flickr and the Creative Commons music site, ccMixter, now offer easy options for posting and tracking authorship and giving credit. The ease by which we all cut and paste these days raises many questions about the definition of the word “plagiarism.” But by expecting students to provide attribution to the best of their ability, and discussing the challenges they encounter as they try to do this, the education world can help redefine what it means to be an ethical and active participant in collaborative authoring ventures. “Literacy has always been a collection of cultural and communicative practices shared among members of particular groups,” writes the NCTE Executive Committee. “As society and technology change, so does literacy.” While there’s no telling what next year’s technologies will bring in the way of literacy opportunities and challenges, today’s educators can lay the groundwork for whatever is to come by preparing students to be critical thinkers, savvy researchers, and ethical contributors to the Participation Age. Judy Salpeter, former editor in chief of Technology & Learning, now serves as program director for T&L’s Tech Forum conferences and works as a freelance writer and consultant. 28 | www.techlearning.com http://creativecommons.org http://www.elearnspace.org/ http://www.bl.uk/news/2008/pressrelease20080116.html http://www.information-literacy.net http://JakesOnline.Org http://jakesonline.org http://landmark-project.com http://www.media-awareness.ca http://www.techlearning.com

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Technology & Learning - May 2008 Contents New@techlearning.com Editor’s Desk News and Trends E-Learning Gets Real Cover Story: Make Students Info Literate School CIO Product Guide Reviews Best of the Blogs What’s New LOY Profile Series

Technology & Learning - May 2008

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