Raising Students' Awareness of Copyright
from NCTE INBOX 3-11-08

This week is Copyright Awareness Week (G), an event designed to urge teachers from across the curriculum to teach students basic concepts of copyright. The following resources provide options to explore these issues with students.

The youngest students can discuss the importance of recording and documenting the resources that they consult during their inquiry projects with the ReadWriteThink lesson plans Research Building Blocks: Notes, Quotes, and Fact Fragments (E) and Research Building Blocks: "Cite Those Sources!" (E). These lessons discuss the difference between quotations and paraphrase and emphasize the importance of giving credit to the authors of the information they gather as they complete research.

Middle-level students can explore and practice fair use and copyright with the ReadWriteThink lesson Campaigning for Fair Use: Public Service Announcements on Copyright Awareness (M), which invites students to explore a range of resources on fair use and copyright and then design their own audio public service announcements (PSAs), to be broadcast over the school's public address system.

Take advantage of high school students' interest in music and audio sharing as part of a persuasive-debate unit with the ReadWriteThink lesson plan Copyright Infringement or Not? The Debate over Downloading Music (S), which asks students to research the ethical and legal considerations surrounding the practice. Students take a stand on the issue and participate in a classroom debate based on their findings.

Written by the CCCC Caucus on Intellectual Property, "Use Your Fair Use: Strategies toward Action" (C) outlines details on fair use that teachers should know and offers suggestions for actions that teachers can take to both protect intellectual property rights and take advantage of fair use of texts in the classroom.