Skill: Create 3.1.2 Fair Use and the TEACH Act Quest

 As discussed throughout this quest, Fair Use and the TEACH act allow educators to use copyrighted material for educational purposes. Referring to the checklist and resources provided, determine how this information may be applied in an online classroom. In your respective blog, discuss the following:

 •                How does an understanding of Fair Use affect one’s role as an online instructor?

For an instructor, face-to-face or online, it is really important to understand the Fair Use Act.  It is not ‘more important’ for an online instructor – but because everything they do is ‘online’ there is more of chance for someone getting caught using materials that they are not supposed to – so I would say it is extremely important for online educators to understand the guidelines as to how materials that are copyrighted for be used within their classrooms.  I like how the article What is Fair Use says “In its most general sense, a fair use is any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited and “transformative” purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize, or parody a copyrighted work. Such uses can be done without permission from the copyright owner.” To put simply, the Fair Use act asks these questions: 

• The purpose and character of the use
• The nature of the work
• The amount and substantially of the portion used in relation to the work as a whole
• The effect of the use on the market or potential market for the original work

•                How do Fair Use and the TEACH Act correlate to the delivery of reliable content?

Both of these apply to teachers and help guide educators on how and what they can use.  The Fair
Use act applies to everyone including teachers, while the TEACH act apple sot teachers only. There
are very clear details and exemptions that do not apply to non educators that apply to us.  A complete
list of guidelines for the TEACH ACT can be found online at the University of Texas.  If the work
is taken from somewhere else, online educators should always check the list to make sure they are in 
compliance.