Appropriate use of Electronic
Media in the Classroom: Risks &
Benefits
Brandy Close, M. Ed.
OSU-CHS
Office of Educational Development
Objectives
• Discuss copyright & fair use of electronic
media/content in education
• Utilize best practices in the application of social
media in higher education
• Determine appropriate use of mobile and
electronic devices in the classroom
• Discuss proposed digital media guidelines
specific to OSU-CHS
Copyright/Fair Use: Course
Materials
Who possesses Copyright?
• Textbook publisher
• Author of scholarly
article
• Author of a blog or forum
• An artist
• Photographer
• Email author
Scenario:
A professor is charged by his/her chair with developing an online course
entitled “Introduction to Business Law”. In developing the course, he/she
wants to include a graphic on the main page (the author, like many other
online course developers, has done this while developing courses). They
choose as a graphic the symbol of our legal system, Lady Justice. A search
of graphics on a popular search engine with the phrase “Lady Justice”
yields over 70,000 images. From these, they could pick an image, copy
and save it to their computer, then paste it onto their course site. Assume
they also wish to include an excerpt, approximately five pages of a fifteen
page article, on their course site from the Harvard Business Review
(HBR), which is available online. They could easily download an article
from the HBR by copying it from the online website, pasting the pertinent
five pages to a word file, and uploading it onto their course site as a word
document. Both the graphic and the article could be taken without
knowledge or permission of the copyright holders.
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
The “Fair-Use Exception”:
• Academics are privileged to make use of intellectual
property without permission of the copyright holder
• Congress approves the practice of making “multiple
copies for classroom use”
• Exists as a policy because it is considered to promote
the progress of knowledge, science, and art
• Professor may use another’s work and expand on it or
use it to promote further knowledge
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
The Fair Use Test
The character of the use:
• use serves the primary purpose of promoting
knowledge
• Use is transformative- the less derivative the
product the more likely it is qualifies under fair
use
• Use is for commercial purpose- will likely not
qualify under fair use
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
The nature of the copyrighted work:
• Is copyrighted work published or unpublished?- if
published, fair use is likely upheld
-Unpublished work tends to be more private
(emails, manuscripts, etc.)
• Is the copyrighted work purely creative?- if so,
fair use is less likely qualify
• Is the copyrighted work purely informative?- if so,
fair use likely qualifies
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
The proportion of the copyrighted work
used:
• Utilizing higher proportions of copyrighted
material decreases the likelihood of qualifying
under fair use
- Small percentages of work can disqualify fair use as well:
“heart of the work” describes minimal uses yet form the
essence of the work
• Article: 5-15 pages or 20 % falls beyond the outer
limits of fair use
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
The effect of the fair use on market for the
copyrighted work:
• Distribution of copyrighted material inhibits
author’s possibilities of selling his/her work in
that market- disqualified under fair use
• Academic articles are seldomly written for profit,
but academic journals publish for profit-
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
Scenario Conclusion:
The hypothetical business law professor’s use
of the copyrighted materials for her course site
would probably not be covered by fair use. She
used purely creative material, did little
transformative work on one item, none on the
other, used the entire copyrighted work in one
case and one third of an article in another, and
she has quite likely affected the market at her
university for at least one of works, possibly
both.
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
Issues Regarding The Fair
Use Test
• Fair use cannot be analyzed in a simple way
• The law of copyright is in a state of flux
• No statute that establishes a certain
percentage, pages, or distribution (# of
students) ensuring fair use
• Liability typically falls upon the university when
a professor violates fair use
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter144/wiggins144.html
Application of Social Media
1. Develop a strategy and set goals
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What type of content will you deliver?
How often will you post content?
Where will the content come from?
Who will be responsible for posting?
Develop overarching goals- What do you want
to accomplish by using social media?
http://mashable.com/2011/10/10/universities-social-media/
2. Choose Platforms Wisely
• Decide which social media best serves your
course goals.
• Consider your student population-possibly
poll students for desired platforms
http://mashable.com/2011/10/10/universities-social-media/
3. Implement Institutional Guidelines
• University guidelines ensure consistency
• Guidelines vary among institutions
• Various Institutions’ Social Media Guidelines:
http://doteduguru.com/id6144-social-media-policy-resource-guidefrom-simtech10.html
http://mashable.com/2011/10/10/universities-social-media/
4. Be Consistent
• Using social media is an extension of the
university’s brand
• Consider your voice- avoid sarcastic,
inappropriate, or personal responses
http://mashable.com/2011/10/10/universities-social-media/
Using Mobile and Electronic
Devices in the Classroom
• Younger generations own, use, and embrace mobile
devices
• Students enter higher education expecting the use of
mobile devices in their learning
• Higher education institutions expect utilization of
mobile devices in instruction and communication
• Create syllabus language and guidelines for laptop use and for cell
phone use (depending upon your class, these may be separate).
• Student signed social media contract
• Determine consequences for violation of contract
http://otl.du.edu/teaching-resources/managing-mobile-devices-in-the-classroom/
Social Media Guidelines at
OSU-CHS
• Be Transparent- be honest about your identity and
state the purpose of your use of digital media
• Protect Your Privacy and that of Studentsreview settings to limit information available to
public
• Protect Your Sites- share passwords or access with
only those who need access
• Offer Values to Others- be sure there is a need for
the use of the digital platform
• Engage Like it is a Conversation- engage with
questions and comments that are open-ended; invite
responses and encourage comments
• Respect Others- respect differing opinions and
spirited debates
• Keep Your Engagement Clean and Tastefulavoid offensive language or photos
• Adhere to Legal or Regulatory Requirementsavoid sharing proprietary or confidential information
• Do Not Speak or State a Position On Behalf of
the University Without Prior Approval- OSUCHS cannot take a position on a variety of topics (i.e.
political candidates)
• No Alcohol or Drugs Allowed- the University's
alcohol and drug policy applies online (avoid posting
content or images involving these substances)
Questions????