Procedure 2312 - Copyright Compliance

The reproduction or use of copyrighted material by educators and library/media specialists is permitted by law under certain circumstances. District personnel shall abide by such principles of "fair use” as permitted by law, Federal guidelines, and District procedures. 

A. Authorized Reproduction and Use of Copyrighted Material in Print 

1. In preparing for instruction a teacher may make or have made a single copy of: 

a. A chapter from a book. 
b. An article from a newspaper or periodical. 
c. A short story, short essay or short poem. 
d. A chart, graph, diagram, drawing, cartoon or picture from a book, periodical, or newspaper. 
 

2. A teacher may make multiple copies of the following for classroom use (no more than one copy per student): 

a. A complete poem of less than 250 words that is printed on two pages or less. 
b. An excerpt of not more than 250 words from a longer poem. 
c. A complete prose work if it is less than 2,500 words. 
d. An excerpt of not more than 500 words from a prose work of between 2,500 and 5,000 words. 
e. An excerpt of not more than 10% of a prose work of between 5,000 and 10,000 words. 
f. An excerpt of not more than 1000 words from a prose work which is greater than 10,000 words. 
g. One illustration per book or periodical issue. 
h. Not more than two pages and 10% of the words of "special works" which combine illustration and less than 2,500 words (such as many children's books). 

(Numerical limits may be exceeded in order to complete a line of poetry or a paragraph of prose.) 

3. Performances by teachers or students of copyrighted dramatic works without authorization from the copyright owner are permitted as part of a teaching activity in a classroom or instructional setting. All other performances require permission from the copyright owner. 

4. Teachers may use copyrighted material in opaque projectors for instructional purposes. 

B. Authorized Reproduction and Use of Copyrighted Music 

1. A teacher may make a single copy of a song, movement, or short section from a printed musical work that is unavailable except in a larger work for purposes of preparing for instruction. 

2. A teacher may make multiple copies for classroom use of an excerpt of not more than 10% of a printed musical work if it is to be used for academic purposes other than performance, provided that the excerpt does not comprise a part of the whole musical work which would constitute a performable unit such as a complete section, movement, or song. 

3. In an emergency a teacher may make and use replacement copies of printed music for an imminent musical performance when the purchased copies have been lost, destroyed, or are otherwise not available, providing purchased replacement copies shall be substituted in due course. 

4. A teacher may make and retain a single recording of student performances of copyrighted material when it is made for purposes of evaluation or rehearsal. 

5. A teacher may make and retain a single copy of excerpts from recordings of copyrighted musical works for use as aural exercises of examination questions. 

6. A teacher may edit or simplify purchased copies of music provided that the fundamental character of the music is not distorted. Lyrics shall not be altered or added if none exist. 

7. Performance by teachers or students of copyrighted musical works is permitted without the authorization of the copyright owner as part of a teaching activity in a classroom or instructional setting. The purpose shall be instructional rather than for entertainment. 

8. Performances of non-dramatic musical works which are copyrighted are permitted without the authorization of the copyright owner provided that: 

a. The performance is not for a commercial purpose. 
b. None of the performers, promoters, or organizers are compensated. 
c. Admission fees are used for educational or charitable purposes only. 
 

All other musical performances require permission from the copyright owner. 

9. Copying shall not: 

a. Substitute for the purchase of books, publisher’s reprints or periodicals. 
b. Be directed by higher authority. 
c. Be repeated with respect to the same item by the same teacher from term to term. 
d. Be made for the purpose of substituting for the purchase of music except where other guidelines are met (see B.3). 
 

C. Authorized Reproduction and Use of Copyrighted Audio-Visual Material 

1. Before reproducing small portions of sound recordings, film-strips, slide sets, transparencies, or motion pictures, or video taping commercial television broadcasts, personnel shall consult with the principal to determine H the proposed action complies with the "fair use" principles of the copyright law. 

2. School recordings may be made of certain instructional television programs broadcast by educational television stations. Before recording the broadcast the following conditions must be satisfied: 

a. The school must be a member of the instructional television network. 
b. The monthly list of programs not licensed for recording shall be consulted. Any program listed shall not be recorded. 
c. Recordings may be used only in classroom or instructional settings as an educational activity. 
d. Recordings shall be used only in the facilities of the district and shall not be loaned or made available outside of those facilities. 
e. Recordings shall be retained for no more than seven days following the broadcast, unless an extension is authorized in writing in advance. 
 

3. Simultaneous rebroadcast of both commercial and educational television broadcast is permissible if it is primarily for instructional use in classrooms. 

D. Authorized Reproduction and Use of Copyrighted Materials in the Library 

1. A library may make a single copy of: 

a. An unpublished work which is in its collection. 
b. A published work in order to replace it because it is damaged, deteriorated, lost or stolen, provided that an unused replacement cannot be obtained at a fair price. 
 

2. A library may provide a single copy of copyrighted material at a cost to a student or staff member. The copy must be limited to one article of a periodical issue or a small part of other material, unless the library finds that the copyrighted work cannot be obtained elsewhere at a fair price. In the latter circumstance the entire work may be copied. In any case, the copy shall contain the notice of copyright and the student or staff member shall be notified that the copy is to be used only for private study, scholarship or research. Any other use may subject the person to liability for copyright infringement. 

3. At the request of a teacher copies may be made for reserve use. The same limits apply as for single or multiple copies designated in sections A.1 and A.2 above. 

E. Copying Limitations 

Circumstances will arise when personnel are uncertain whether or not copying is prohibited. In those circumstances the principal should be contacted. Nonetheless, the following prohibitions have been expressly stated in Federal guidelines: 

1. Reproduction of copyrighted material shall not be used to create or substitute for anthologies, compilations, or collective works. 

2. Unless expressly permitted by agreement with the publisher and authorized by district action, there shall be no copying from copyrighted consumable materials such as workbooks, exercises, test booklets, answer sheets and the like. 

3. Personnel shall not: 

a. Use copies to substitute for the purchase of books, periodicals, music recordings or other copyright material except as permitted by district procedure. 
b. Copy or use the same item from term to term without the copyright owner's permission. 
c. Copy or use more than nine instances of multiple copying of protected material in any one term. 
d. Copy or use more than one short work or two excerpts from works of the same author in any one term; or 
e. Copy or use protected material without including a notice of copyright such as:  NOTICE: THIS MATERIAL MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT LAW. 
 

4. Personnel shall not reproduce or use copyrighted material at the direction of someone in higher authority or copy or use such materials in emulation of some other teacher's use of copyrighted material without permission of the copyright owner. 

SAMPLE REQUEST FOR PERMISSION TO COPY FORM