Week 1 Blog Response 2: Kat Thoreson

Kat's blog post: The information presented on Fair Use clarified several things for me. I believe, up until now, I was following loosely the rules established. I have always asked permission before using music in my classroom, for teaching purposes, and I have clarified somewhat the issues for my students. Listening and observing the video has more clearly defined what I am able to use. I'm excited to share these clarifications with my students.  Other issues about remix have always had me wondering how they can do that. Many folks believe that new content is not being created. How can we be 'inspired' by past creation? The fair use right is rooted in the first amendment. The attorney clarified that we must 'use or lose it". I love that it follows reason and logic and is not 'black and white'.  We must ask ourselves "What is normal, particularly in the field?"  I hope to have the students write about fair use, perhaps use a case study that is complicated in order that they may understand how complicated the issues are.   A rule of thumb is to always credit your sources. 

My response to Kat's blog: 
Kat,
It is very hard to adhere completely with copyright law in this day and age. The Internet has completely changed the game in regard to how we have access to media. Students generally have no clue about copyright, nor does it seem that they care. When I have students create a mix in my audio class, my first rule of thumb is to make it original. It's ok if the beat sounds like a previously recorded one, as long as you make it your own and don't blatantly steal a loop or sample. In music there are so many ways to get in trouble with this, but there are only so many chords, progressions, and rhythms that you are bound to repeat something an artist already did.
And yes, if you credit your source, you are always better off.

Dave
 

Week 1 Blog Response 1: Julia Hutchinson

Julia's post:

As a graphic designer & instructor, there is probably no other word (aside from Comic Sans) that evokes fear, uncertainty, and debate like ‘copyright’. The discussion is never over the clear ‘black and white’ issues. For example, clearly you cannot use the Walt Disney signature typeface for a brand name, regardless of whether it’s for personal or commercial use. It’s always over the gray areas. So for this course to start off by delving right into the realm of Copyright and Fair Use is rather commendable, and speaks to the importance of the topic.
I think back to the Month 1 Media Literacy & Research course when we had to create a lesson in Second Life. Our team decided to create a lesson centered on the 1776 signing of the Declaration of Independence. We wanted to incorporate the famous 1795 John Trumball painting, and audio of Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson as depicted in a film about the historic event. It was then that I really learned about the Fair Use Act and how it ‘liberated’ educators from the censorship tyranny that can be inflicted by copyright. Our situation was a prime example of the need to use copyrighted material for the purpose of teaching, AND, without the material, the lesson could not be as effective. Where needed, we obtained the proper usage rights for much of our media. In most cases, all that was required was a citation of the source in the credits.
 All in all, I look forward to continue learning about the nuances of Copyright and Fair Use, and how it applies to educators and the classroom.

My response to Julia: 

Hi Julia,
Here's a big "howdy" back at you from Texas. You are so true that Copyright is a very important topic that should be addressed by any teacher, especially when technology is involved. I really like how you addressed Fair Use as an act of liberation for educators. That is so true. So much pressure was taken off the backs of educators by its inception. As I was viewing the videos, I started to get a little overwhelmed by the complexity of it all. Bottom line, Fair Use is a "defensible position" if ever an issue arose.
 Dave
 

Week 1 Wimba Archive - Media Asset Creation

FYI, my dog did not listen to the Week 1 Wimba session. My hamster did. He, he!

I felt that the Wimba session this week was a rehash of the course overview, but with more detail. Somewhere along the way I thought that the final presentation page was due by Monday, but now I realize that the abstract is due. (abstract 120 words or less, a sentence for each section of the project)

Mr. Bastillos really drove home the fact that our Capstone project is due on July 9^th, and we can’t get a grade for the leadership portion of the course until it is approved. I feel pretty good about this since I am down to the abstract section.

As far as the leadership portion, he really clarified that we are to pick one publication, versus multiple submissions. Originally I thought we could submit our research to multiple sources. I had no idea this would be a problem. It makes sense now.

Our biggest challenge this month, in my opinion, is the leadership project. Our Capstone has been a 12-month process with lots of help from Roxanne and others. The challenge will be in converting it to a presentation format, whether that is in paper, or actual presentation form.

Month 11. We are but a few weeks away from that much deserved celebration of accomplishment. Let’s make it count.

Week 1 Leadership Blog Post: To Publish or To Present

Worship leading at my church. 

When I first read the assignment details I immediately started getting butterflies in my stomach. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind being in front of people. I truly enjoy performing (singing, playing guitar, etc) for others as I have been practicing  since I was a young boy.

So, I guess my choice would be to publish. Teaching students is one thing, but having an audience of educators, quite frankly, would take some time to prepare for. Not to mention the feeling of being under a microscope. To this point in life, speaking in front of others has been a challenge for me.

Publishing, although still under the same microscope, takes some of the sting of presenting for me. Maybe some day I’ll hone my presentation skills, which will help reduce the fear and nervousness of presenting. Who knows? Anything is possible.

Where to publish? There are so many publications listed by Dr. Bedard, it could be a cumbersome task to find one. I guess a broadcast approach would be a place to start. Send the project out to many in the hope that one or more would accept the project for publication. 

Week 1 Reading: Copyright Issues

By Xander (self-made - Image:Postscript-viewer.svg) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

After watching all of the videos on copyright, fair use, and so forth, I felt like the information was fed to me through a fire hose. I knew going into the readings that copyright was a touch subject and has been the source of many lawsuits over the years. There have been some school districts that have even had their hand slapped regarding copyright infringement.

My first introduction to copyright was when I studied music in college. One of my upper level courses touched on the subject briefly. So I had just enough information about the subject to keep me out of most issues. Copyright was still a hard subject to grasp. There are so many grey areas that it is hard to “know when to hold em’” or “fold em’”, as Kenny Rogers would explain in The Gambler. Use of copyright material could literally be a gamble.

Musicians have borrowed musical ideas from each other for centuries, however there are many intricacies of copyright that apply that composers of the 18th and 19th centuries didn't have to deal with. As a band director, when having students participate in recorded concerts, issues arise with regard to copyright, especially when Disney songs are involved. They have such a tight reign on their property that it is nearly impossible to duplicate anything related to them.

The pop group “Men at Work” found out the hard way recently that permission for even using a popular melody must be sought before taking credit for the creation.

The videos did a fair job of defining the proper uses of copyrighted material and a more accurate description of fair use.

To be on the safe side, educators should create their own materials. Many of the classes at Full Sail have stressed this. If you have to use others work, either use Creative Commons material with the proper attribution, or get permission from the author/creator of the work.

If I were to have one gripe, it would have been nice to have this material presented in the first few months of our EMDT program. I understand that everything is set in place for the sequence, but it would have been nice to understand a little more about the issues with copyright a little earlier.