Why Copyright Matters

Hi Everyone!

Today I will briefly discussing what Copyright is and why it really matters in a society that is rapidly becoming more technologically inclined.

In short, whenever you create your own intellectual material, whether that be a piece of art, a

Katic, K. © (2015). Cottage Sunrise. (Photograph)

movie, a story, or anything of the like, you automatically own the rights for that piece of material; this is called Copyright, and it protects your own material from anything that you do not consent to (Creative Commons, 2006). For example, the photo I have provided on the right is my own that I took with my camera. The rights for this image to be used are strictly my own, and if anyone should want to use it for a future project, they need to obtain my consent in order to do so. However, there are different types of Copyright that you can select for your intellectual or creative property, whereby the Copyright states "Some Rights Reserved" as opposed to "All Rights Reserved", and you can stipulate the manner in which you allow your property to be used by the public. Websites such as Creative Commons are great tools to use for this purpose.

The crucial lesson of Copyright is very important to teach students. Teachers are absolutely a huge influence in setting a positive example to their students, and teaching them morals.Within and outside the school environment, students are encouraged to explore their creativity, the importance of original thinking, and especially the consequences of plagiarism. As a teacher, it is important to emphasize to students that their own work belongs to them, and if they decide to use anyone else's material, they must ask for permission and give that person recognition, otherwise it is stealing and morally incorrect.

San Jose Library. (2008, August 23). Children Using
The Computer. (Online Image). http://bit.ly/1XNtgrJ

Pixabay. (2014, March 14). "Children, Win, Success,
Video Game". (Online Image). http://bit.ly/1MrDNoU

Above, I have included two images that illustrate children using computers. The image on the left I obtained through the Flickr Website, and the image on the right I obtained through the Google Images search engine. Both images have Copyright associated with them, however, it is stipulated that there are "Some Rights Reserved". As such, as long as the proper credit is given to the source I retrieved them from, I am allowed to use these images in my blog.

Katic, K. © (2015). Obtaining Copyright Permission
Image Selection (Screenshot).

The purpose of this demonstration is to show students that there are accredited websites that have the Copyright explicitly stated, and any image in that website is acceptable to use as long as proper credit is given. There are also others ways to obtain images with Copyright permission. For example, the image to the right demonstrates how to search for images in Google that have Copyright access associated with them. This tool is great to show students as it teaches them the value of giving credit to another person's work as well as teaching them the value of their own creative and intellectual material. As a student teacher, I am hoping to instill these values in my own students one day as I believe this truly matters in a society that is rapidly becoming more technologically inclined.

References 
Creative Commons. (2006). Wanna Work Together? (Video). Retrieved from <http://creativecommons.org/videos/wanna-work-together>

Katic, K. (2015). Cottage Sunrise. (Photograph). Retrieved from Personal Files. 

Katic, K. (2015). Obtaining Copyright Permission Image Selection (Screenshot). Retrieved through Personal Research. 

Pixabay. (March 14 2014). "Children, Win, Success, Video Game". StartupStockPhotos Collection. (Online Image). 
Retrieved from <https://pixabay.com/en/children-win-success-video-game-593313/> 

San Jose Library. (August 23 2008). Children Using The Computer. Branch Willow Glen. (Online Image). Retrieved from <https://www.flickr.com/photos/sanjoselibrary/2839835109/in/photolist-5jWU3i-5guc28-6VvuFx-4TyqWE-6wo5vG-5guaYp-5gywLA-4m5ojv-5gywcb-7LRPcs-e3Zz1-99EyQN-duvjjF-99FWTY-99CQgX-pyrM81-kpwdE-4m9qPy-5bwe6M-4DEf6B-5jXeU6-wH4BPL-ehBnRE-9es4mr-5JUU5s-q3K1zE-99XWwh-99DbaH-99CMGB-4cPmgA-62Y6XP-8XHKbe-4xBfB5-qpA85n-dkYFci-4E2zcQ-4unjj-99DNn5-99GKB5-5ugLFE-hT9xeh-6wnx18-f7Nth-2RYxn-9k5FFA-8GmvbX-4Xtgen-9ayqsd-7Cj5Uu-bqVQtj>