For Faculty

Copyright: What Can I Put in Blackboard?

by Camille Thomas, Scholarly Communication and Copyright Librarian, Texas Tech University Libraries

*Adapted from a presentation by Brett. D Currier, J.D., under Creative Commons license
and information by Brigham Young University Libraries

First, what is protected by copyright?
Original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression. That means no formal registration or even notation (e.g. © ) is necessary once an idea has been written down or put into a format. Copyrighted works include things like audiovisual works, graphics, sculptures, dramatic works, literary works, architectural works and performance works.

What do you do with the copyrighted materials?

 
Exemptions for Teaching
The TEACH Act makes many exemptions for face to face courses, but online teaching is more conditional due to the nature of the web. A good rule of thumb is using an amount of a work comparable to that performed or displayed in a live classroom such as limiting access and copies to registered students and/or individual class sessions. Fair Use claims may be made by instructors where TEACH act guidelines may not be clear or use is integral to the class. For example, using part of a book chapter during the weeks students may be in the process of getting the textbook can be a fair use claim. For more information, visit: guides.library.ttu.edu/copyright/teaching.

Copyright and Lecture Ownership
According to the Texas Tech University Intellectual Property Policy, the individual faculty member owns the copyright in authorized recordings of his or her lecture or class. TTU does reserve the right to record lectures and allow students registered for the class to view them online. If the recording is to be distributed to the public and not limited to internal use, then a release should be secured from the speaker for distribution or the speaker should license the video with a creative commons license that would grant such use.

Privacy Concerns or Including Student Work
Using a slide or the syllabus to inform a general class audience that the lecture will be recorded and made available on the internet is usually sufficient. Lectures that include or disseminates students' questions/responses, a group discussion, student presentations or a guest speaker, means the faculty is responsible for asking identifiable students or guests to sign a consent form when the audience is broader than the class itself-- such as using it in future classes or making it publicly available. It is TTU policy that students own the right to their work created in courses.

Got a question? Contact your Personal Librarian or the Scholarly Communication/Copyright Librarian at libraries.copyright@ttu.edu for any questions not answered in this post, or specific to your situation.