The Technology, Education
and Copyright Harmonization (TEACH) Act
Introduction
In November
2002 the Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH)
became law and updated existing copyright laws in the realm of distance
education. To offer some clarification concerning TEACH and its effects
on distance education here at the University of Baltimore, this page will
provide information on the use of copyrighted materials protected by TEACH.
For any uses that are unclear in TEACH or do not fall within the purview
of TEACH legislation, review the guidelines provided with the fair use
exemption of the copyright law or please consult legal counsel. For additional
information, read ALA’s New
Copyright Law for Distance and Education: The Meaning and Importance of
the TEACH Act. Also helpful is the University of Texas System’s
The
TEACH Act Finally Becomes Law.
Prior to
the growth of online education, faculty use of materials in the classroom
fell under the fair use exemption of the 1976 Copyright Act, and faculty
could use bits of print and audiovisual materials as part of the classroom
teaching experience, provided that their use was within the fair use guidelines.
Today, with the distribution of many courses and course material via the
Internet, faculty will use elements of the TEACH legislation as well as
the broader fair use exemption to gauge their use of copyrighted works
for online classes.
The law mandates
that faculty take reasonable protection measuring when using materials
for their online courses, including using password protected sites, notifying
students on copyright issues, limiting use to a specified period of time
roughly equal to the time used in a physical classroom and incorporating
the material in an integral way to course discussion. The legislation
also requires that colleges and university draft written copyright policies
for their campuses before they can post copyrighted items online.
For more information on what campuses need to do to determine eligibility
see North Carolina State University's TEACH
Toolkit.
Acceptable
use of materials under TEACH
The TEACH
Act permits the use of the following copyrighted works:
- Nondramatic
literary works
- Nondramatic
musical works
- “Reasonable
and limited portions” of other works, including audiovisual and
dramatic works
The law broadens
the transmission of material to locations outside the classroom where
students can access online course pages. Faculty must take reasonable
actions to limit the access of material, including instituting password-protected
sites or using commercial courseware that restricts access to currently
enrolled students.
The law does
state that copyrighted material may not remain available for access for
a period longer than necessary for the needs of the course. The digitized
material may, however, be retained electronically for later use, provided
the storage facility and equipment is secure.
Unacceptable use of materials under TEACH
The legislation
now permits the use of many types of copyrighted works, but some works
are expressly prohibited under the TEACH legislation. These include digital
educational works considered “primarily for performance or display
as part of mediated instructional activities transmitted via digital networks”
and pirated copies of materials.
Reserve
readings and TEACH
The TEACH
Act does not expressly cover reserve readings held in the library or accessible
through academic courseware. Legitimate use of such materials is still
governed by intelligent application of the principles of “Fair
Use”.
For
more information:
Overview
of Copyright and Distance Education
Technological
Protection Systems for Digitized Copyrighted Works: :
A Report to Congress
This page is reprinted with permission from Langsdale Library, University of Baltimore
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