January's Wrap-Up
Primary Sources, Fair Use, and the Creative Commons
The time is always right to do what is right. -- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
January was a fun and challenging month. Thank you for following
along with me on this journey! :)
Keeping up with this daily blog worked even through my
episode of the flu, as well as through the start of a new semester as a student
and instructor. However, I must apologize about last week. My blogging streak
took a hit for a few days as my father was in and out of the hospital.
Live and learn! Now I realize I need to have contingency plans
in place so I can continue to blog in spite of the challenges life throws my
way.
As we wrap-up the exploration of the monthly values of
purity and clarity, we now have created a working teaching philosophy, have
cleaned up our online resume and profiles, have revamped our instructor
policies, and have made a personal commitment to professional excellence. I
think we’ve done great work!
To fill in what we missed last week concerning fair use,
copyright, and the creative commons, I have provided my favorite resource here
for your review.
Fair Use and Copyright for Online Education by the
University of Rhode Island Libraries, http://uri.libguides.com/fairuse
This comprehensive guide is easy to use and provides examples for text
materials, videos, sound recordings, and images. In addition, the website
reviews open educational licenses, creative commons, public domain, library resources,
and obtaining permission. I highly recommend bookmarking this useful resource.
I also recommend reviewing the Creative Commons website, http://creativecommons.org/, as a way to
copyright your own work and materials, while still allowing them to be shared
as educational materials or in any way you choose. The Creative Commons was
established in 2001 as a “simple, standardized way to give the public
permission to share and use your creative work – on conditions of your choice.”
Using these two resources will inform you regarding the
majority of legal issues you may encounter as an online instructor. Do your best to protect yourself and model proper attribution for students.
As for primary sources, I encourage you to use them as much
as possible in your own work and to require students to do the same. Three primary source websites useful in research include:
The United States Census Bureau, www.census.gov
This website provides “quick, easy access to facts about
people, business, and geography,” information about individual states, a
library of useful multimedia files and infographics, and the latest news, data,
and publications about the people and processes of America.
The CIA Website, www.cia.gov
Here you can access the World Factbook, a directory of world
leaders, the historical collection of declassified documents, videos, and
images, as well as research from the Center for the Study of Intelligence.
The Library of Congress, www.loc.org
Need I say more?
So, as we progress through this year, let us maintain our
commitment to clarity in our communications about ourselves and with students,
as well as our commitment to excellence in our professional endeavors, teaching
and modeling best practices and academic integrity, upholding our policies, and
maintaining academic rigor.
Join me next time as we begin our February study of love and
appreciation for teaching.
See you then,
Melynda
#TCBHigherEd
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