Copyright for GISD Educators
Fair Use and Educational Use
FAIR USE
What is Fair Use?
Fair Use allows the use of copyrighted material for certain purposes without requiring permission, fee, and/or royalty. Fair use can apply to review of items, news reporting, research, or teaching. There are four fair use factors that are used to determine if a use truly falls under “fair use.”
Four Factors of Fair Use
1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes.
- Does the new work transform the original work or offer something beyond the original? Copyrighted works that are altered significantly are more likely to be considered fair use.
- Is the use for nonprofit or educational purposes? Copyrighted works used for nonprofit or educational purposes are more likely to be considered fair use.
2. The nature of the copyrighted work.
- Is the copyrighted work published or unpublished? Published works are more likely to be considered fair use.
- Is the original work out of print? Out of print works are more likely to be considered fair use.
- Is the copyrighted work factual or creative? Factual works are more likely to be considered fair use.
3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole.
- Is the amount of the original work used reasonable? The smaller the percentage of the work used, the more likely it is to qualify as fair use.
- Is the section of the original work used the most important part of the work? The less significant the portion of the work used, the more likely it is to be considered fair use.
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.
- Does the new work appeal to the same audience as the original work? Copyrighted works that are used for another purpose or designed to appeal to a different audience are more likely to be considered fair use.
What is Educational Use?
The educational fair use guidelines apply to material used in educational institutions and for educational purposes.
“Educational purposes” are:
- noncommercial instruction or curriculum-based teaching by educators to students at nonprofit educational institutions
- planned noncommercial study or investigation directed toward making a contribution to a field of knowledge, or
- presentation of research findings at noncommercial peer conferences, workshops, or seminars.