Copyright is NO Joke!

So this week we learned about copyright. This is something that we think we know a lot about, but in fact there are a lot more rules about copyright than I thought. From watching the three videos about copyright, I learned that you really have to be careful with what and how much material you are using in your classroom unless you have purchased it. The thing about the public school systems is probably more often than not people are not going to think much about the material you are using as a teaching aid. So in reality you probably would be able to get away with a lot of things. Although this is dishonest. We need to be honest in all our doings, so understanding where your limitations are in regards to using multimedia is a smart thing!

I watched two videos of my own from TeacherTube, and analyzed if they were following by the copyright laws and this is what I saw:

SMS Teacher Evolution of Dance:
The first video I watch was actually very entertaining! It was four teachers reenacting the Evolutions of Dance video on YouTube. Some of the good things about this video, is while this was mostly for a humorous talent show act it really does show the history and the Evolution of Dance. Most of the students probably don't understand or don't follow the progression of the dances that well, but the skit does provide a historical progression of music and the dancing that came with it. As far as abiding by copyright laws they did a good job. The did not use the same song for more than 30sec. Which is the limit on how long you can use a song unless you have purchased it or come upon by other legal means. Although a problem with this skit is even though most people are familiar with the songs being used, they do not give proper citation to the songs at any point in the skit, which in fact was a problem with the first video made as well. But other than that, these teachers were able to provide an entertaining but yet educational progression and evolution of dance as we "have experienced"

9 Multiplication Tables HipHop Music Video:
Now this is an awesome way to teach if I have ever seen one! This teacher put together this hip hop routine and rap in a way to teach the 9 multiplication tables! Now for some students math can be very difficult to understand. So putting it into a song and dance is a great way to teach. So first off the video was definitely used for educational purposes, because hello, they are teaching math! As far as the music goes they follow the copyright laws I feel because the song was obviously original, so it was their to use as they wish because they wrote it. So it did not matter how much they used or how long it was because it did not belong to anyone else. I think this is a great way to teach difficult concepts in school! I think this is definitely something to consider!!!

This was actually quite an entertaining assignment, and TeacherTube is a great resource to have for my future years as a teacher. But I guess that's all for now. Until next week!!

Keep Dancing!
Alissa