Can I post copies of copyright protected works, such as a journal article, or a book chapter on an LMS?
Posting a single article or one book chapter would generally be permissible under one of the statutory exceptions such as fair dealing. An instructor should consult their institutions fair dealing policy or guidelines for the copying limits and restrictions.
Is there a difference between posting on a LMS versus a website that anyone can access?
Yes. Posting on a LMS, means that you are posting a copyright protected work on a password-protected site available only to the students registered in the course. A website that is not password protected would be accessible by anyone, not just the students registered in the course. The limited distribution that occurs with an LMS is one of the considerations in determining how fair dealing and the educational exceptions apply when using copyright protected works.
Can I play use a video found on the internet?
As long purpose is for education or training, then a video that is made available through the internet can be used (i.e. YouTube), so long so long as the following is adhered to:
- a digital lock hasn’t been circumvented to access the content,
- there is no clearly visible notice that prohibited the use or reproduction of the video, and
- the instructor knows or has reason to suspect that the video has been posted in violation of the copyright owner’s rights.
Can I show something from Netflix?
Although Netflix is made available through the Internet, it is a service provided to end-users who paid for a subscription. Therefore a end-user who has subscribed to Netflix’s services must adhere to Netflix’s Terms of Use. The Netflix Terms of Use states that “the Netflix service, and any content viewed through our service, are for your personal and non-commercial use only and we grant you a limited, non exclusive, non transferable, license to access the Netflix service for that purpose.” Additionally the Netflix End-User License Agreement states that a membership allows the end-user and the members of their immediate household use of the Netflix services only. From this, it can be concluded that an instructor would need to obtain permission from Netflix in order to show their content to students.
Can I post links?
Generally yes, unless there is a notice that states otherwise. An instructor should check a third party’s copyright works Terms of Use/Terms and Conditions/ Copyright Policy etc. to make sure that there is nothing that states that an Instructor would be prohibited from posting a link. Where an instructor knows, or suspects that resource they wish to use has not been legally posted, then the instructor should not link to it.
Posting a durable link is considered best practice and it is advised that an instructor contact their institution’s copyright office, or library to inquire about how create a durable link.
Can I use third party materials in lecture slides displayed in class?
You are permitted to display third party materials, in each of the following circumstances:
- you have the permission of the copyright owner to do so (which may be permission from the author, or your academic institutions electronic resource license);
- you adhere to the fair dealing exception (see sections 29, 29.1 and 29.2 of the Copyright Act but you should also inquire whether your academic institution has a Fair Dealing Policy, which would provide better details as to your requirements under this exception);
- if the material you wish to display is not available for purchase in a medium appropriate for your purposes, at a reasonable price and within a reasonable time (see section 29.4 of the Copyright Act);
- – if the material is available through the internet and you’ve met the conditions set out in section 30.04 of the Copyright Act (which include: you must properly attribute the source; you may not circumvent a digital lock to get a copy of the work; or you may not ignore a clearly visible notice on the website that prohibits your use of the work in lecture slides).
The above response was adapted from the Scholarly Communications and Copyright Office, University of British Columbia under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Can I use videos as a part of a lecture presentation that will be filmed and posted on an LMS?
You may record a lecture, and post the recording of the lecture onto a secure learning management system (LMS) for your students to access. If the lecture contains content of third party owned copyrighted material, the use of that material must comply with copyright law. Generally speaking this would mean that you would need to ensure that you are complying with the fair dealing exception under the Copyright Act (see sections 29, 29.1 and 29.2). An alternative to this application of the general fair dealing right described above, is the specific exception for third party owned copyrighted material included in a recorded lesson. This is known as the Lesson Exception (see section 30.01 of the Copyright Act).
However, for this exception to apply, the institution and the student must comply with several very important and limiting conditions, most important of which being that the student and academic institution must destroy all recordings of the lesson within 30 days after the day on which the students enrolled in the course have received their final course evaluation.
The above response was adapted from the Scholarly Communications and Copyright Office, University of British Columbia under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Can I incorporate problems from a textbook into a video?
Yes, so long as you adhere to the fair dealing exception or one of the educational institutions exceptions under the Copyright Act. With respect to the educational institutions exceptions of the Copyright Act, specifically, you would be permitted the under section 30.01. Section 30.01 extends to the conditions authorizing copying works uploaded to an academics institution’s learning management system (LMS). However for this exception to apply, the recording must be for an audience primarily of students enrolled at the educational institution and for educational or training purposes. Additionally, any recordings or reproductions of the lesson must be destroyed within 30 days after the day on which the students enrolled in the course of which the lesson forms part have received their final course evaluation. This would mean that all copies of a presentation stored in the LMS must be destroyed, and not merely rendered inaccessible to students, within the 30 day period.
How do I license something I’ve created via Creative Commons?
This one’s easy-peasy. Simply go to the “Choose” page on the Creative Commons website and follow the prompts to select the license features and any attribution details you would like to use. You will be given an icon to use in your work, or the embed code to use on a website.