Copyright and the web

COL opens consultations on educational use of the web and issues of copyright

Virtual conference begins in February 2003.

Many Commonwealth countries have similar copyright legislation and practices - and also have similar debates about what should and shouldn't be in this often-confusing arena. The increasing use of the Internet and the World Wide Web has added a new and very large international dimension. The following article, prepared by Mr. Robert A. Schad, Senior Policy Strategist, University of Regina, and Ms. Wanda Noel, Barrister and Solicitor, Ottawa, describe a current lobby in Canada.

The article is intended to provide some background and spark further Commonwealth-wide discussions through an e-mail-based virtual conference that will be hosted by COL beginning in February. The three-week conference is open to all and there is no cost. Mr. Schad and Ms. Noel will be the moderators. www.col.org/copyright

Mr. Schad and Ms. Noel presented a well-received session on this topic in Durban at the Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning.

A Canadian perspective
Removing the Copyright Barrier: Educational use of the Internet

The Problem

Copyright law is a barrier to the educational use of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Amending the Canadian Copyright Act to remove this barrier is essential if education systems are to produce the highly skilled, computer literate population required in the global information economy.

Current Canadian copyright law often makes the spontaneous use of the Internet by teachers and students illegal. For example, using the information that is found on web sites without obtaining prior written permission is often an infringement of copyright. There are many types of activities that are sound educational practices but are made illegal by current copyright law. A Grade 3 student who copies a picture from a web site, adds it to a report, e-mails the report to her teacher and makes a print copy to show her family has broken copyright law. A university student in a media awareness class that cuts and pastes from different web sites to comment on the composition of the sites is also in violation. A professor who helps his students by posting news clippings on his class web site as a resource for his class is also in violation of copyright law.

The education community in Canada has been actively examining the issues of copyright in a digital environment and its implications for education for a number of years.

The Canadian solution

The education community in Canada is urging its federal government to consider an amendment to the Copyright Act to allow students and educators to make effective and legal use of publicly available Internet materials as part of a programme of learning.

In educational institutions, learning is fostered and sustained by the use of the Internet. However, existing copyright laws impede technology-enhanced learning. Current copyright laws are infringed when students and educators engage in routine activities such as forwarding e-mails and copying information for study purposes. Copyright laws must therefore be changed to legalise and promote technology-enhanced learning, allowing students and educators to employ Internet-based resources without breaking copyright law.

Clarity

By providing legal clarity about the educational use of the Internet, the proposed amendment will reduce the risk of litigation. Legal clarity will also ensure that students and teachers are in a better position to promote best information practices and ethical standards respecting copyright. An example is teaching students about the importance of acknowledging the source of material by crediting the author.

Balance

To provide a viable legislative framework for both creators and users of Internet resources, the Canadian government must ensure a balance between creators' rights and public access to knowledge and information. The proposed amendment upholds the concept of balance, and has conditions that are fair to both the users and creators of copyright material. It would apply uniquely to publicly available sources, and does not change or interfere with the legitimate right of creators who wish to be compensated for the use of their material on the Internet. As well, students and educators benefiting from the amendment would still be required to acknowledge the copyright source and could use Internet material only for educational purposes. Options for providing balanced legislative change are varied and include exceptions, fair dealing, or fair use as it is called in the United States, and collective licensing.

Free versus fee

The Internet is substantially different from commercial vehicles like publishing, radio and television. Where the latter are concerned, educational institutions reimburse creators and producers for the use of their copyright material. It is clear, however, that the Internet is only partially a vehicle for publishing and other commercial ventures. As a driving force in the information age, the Internet is an environment that sustains national and global communication.

Many would argue that the global communications function of the Internet is its most important function. This environment is comprised of the free and willing exchange of ideas, beliefs and knowledge. In fact, the Internet has exerted such influence that non-democratic regimes have, and are attempting to, restrict the ability of its citizens to access and use it. This is a much different environment than that which arose with the introduction of earlier technologies such as the photocopier.

Many web sites are intended to inform and educate the public for free. The World Wide Web has as many similarities to the town square and speakers corner as it does to a bookstore or publishing house. As such, the Internet promotes many uses and performances that are not intended for profit, nor intended to be subject to commercial transaction. Public policy decisions pertaining to copyright must correspond to this new complex environment.

What needs to be done?

These considerations all speak to the need for a balanced and innovative approach in the reform of the Canadian copyright law. The proposed amendment ensures that students and educators who are learning and improving skills with publicly available materials on the Internet are able to do so without infringing copyright. A nation's position in the global information age is dependent on its continued ability to access and learn from Internet-based materials. Copyright laws need to be amended to legalise educational use of publicly available Internet materials.

The information age is here; the decisions made in one country can influence decisions in other countries. This is especially true when dealing with issues in the digital world. What happens to copyright law in one country will be noticed in other countries that are struggling with similar issues. If the education community makes its voice heard regarding the need to remove copyright as a barrier to educational use of the Internet, then there is a greater chance of achieving the needed copyright amendments.

"United we stand, divided we fall" has new resonance in the digital age.

B.Schad/W. Noel

Tangible results for COL virtual conference participants

How do you begin effective educational change? How can new tools, technology and methodology be optimised for distance learning? How should institutions cope with expanding resources and shrinking financial means?

Questions like these sparked discussion and debate in a series of virtual conferences from February to July 2002, initiated by COL and the Federation of Commonwealth Open and Distance Learning Associations (FOCODLA) as a lead-up to the second Pan-Commonwealth Forum (PCF) on Open Learning in Durban, South Africa (29 July to 2 August 2002).

Topics for the six conferences took their cue from the 2002 PCF theme of Open Learning: Transforming Education for Development, revealing at their close some common elements - among these, broader recognition, acceptance and interest in the viability of information and communications technology (ICT) as an integrated aspect of open, distance and lifelong learning systems, in spite of continuing issues related to widespread ICT use.

The virtual conference topics were "Bridging the digital divide," "Technology and lifelong learning," "The future of technology for developing countries," "Distance learning in the small and island states in the Commonwealth," "Quality assurance in open and distance education" and "Open and distance learning for community and social development."

The e-mail-based conferences encouraged topical, accessible and immediate discussion of issues related to the 2002 PCF theme, with emphasis on those affecting developing countries. Use of the Internet encouraged the broadest participation possible. The conferences were open and free to anyone, anywhere, whether they were planning to attend the PCF or not.

Involvement, Commonwealth-wide

The virtual conferences attracted participation from all parts of the Commonwealth and all regions of the globe. The broad appeal of the virtual conferences drew both public and private sector organisations and individuals with interest or investment in open and distance learning. Participants represented special-purpose distance-education institutions as well as conventional ones; international and intergovernmental organisations; governmental and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and included consultants and providers of education-related development services and products.

Each conference drew from 125 to 300 participants - the largest number subscribing to "The future of technology for developing countries." The number of active contributions to each of the virtual conferences, in the form of comments, responses, questions or information, ranged from 100 to more than 300 postings per topic. Some conferences had higher numbers of loquacious participants than others; overall active contributions in each topic hovering at about 50% of those registered. This may seem low, until you consider how many people, face-to-face in a room of 300, would actively participate in a discussion!

Each conference was hosted by a FOCODLA member association and moderated by a subject expert from within their membership. The moderators opened each conference with a topical introduction or series of questions, offered focus and context where needed, and contributed a summary at closing.

The FOCODLA members that hosted discussions were the Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU), the Canadian Association for Distance Education (CADE), the Distance Education Association of New Zealand (DEANZ), the Jamaican Association for Distance and Open Learning (JADOL), the Open and Distance Learning Association of Australia (ODLAA), and the National Association of Distance Education Organisations of South Africa (NADEOSA) - co-sponsors along with COL and the Department of Education, South Africa, of the second Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning.

Themes and outcomes

In "Bridging the digital divide," a conference moderated by Andrew Higgins, at the time with the Higher Education Development Centre, the University of Otago, New Zealand (now Director, Flexible Learning, at the Auckland University of Technology), willingness to communicate and share was identified as key in the exchange of technology and information, creating an institutional culture receptive to technology and change and building and sustaining a collaborative network. Effective sharing must also factor in socio-cultural issues such as language, religion and the role of age in determining receptiveness to, and perception of, technology.

ICT can be a useful tool for lifelong learning, but is only part of the solution for institutions struggling to service growing demand for education and skills training. In the conference on "Technology and lifelong learning," moderated by Catherine McLoughlin of the School of Education, Australian Catholic University, participants felt strongly that every effort needs to be made to ensure that instructional design, planning and pedagogy are not neglected in ICT-based education delivery. Before implementation, research and consultation must determine if the technology is suitable and financially sustainable. McLoughlin added that lifelong learning and ICT-based education need more research in order to establish best practice.

"The future of technology for developing countries" has several potential obstacles, among them cultural or religious resistance to ICT use; lack of available funding for ICT initiatives; difficulty creating and implementing effective e-learning standards; lack of clear institutional or government ICT policy; expensive or unreliable Internet access; and language-based barriers. Participants in the discussion moderated by Bill Fricker, a consultant with the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, Canada, pointed to radio and satellite wireless communications technology as having existing and future potential for cost savings, rapid deployment and reliability for distance learning applications.

"Distance learning in the small and island states in the Commonwealth" is best exploited for career training and as an educational outreach to under-served populations, whether at the elementary, secondary or tertiary level. Participants in the conference moderated by David C. Rand, Director of Continuing Education at the University of Technology, Jamaica, cited lack of adequate ICT infrastructure, such as regular access to electricity, as the main reason web-based learning is not widespread outside of urban areas in the small island states. More "traditional" media such as video, audiotapes or CD, and off-campus mobile or stationary learning centres, will continue to be the norm. Factors for success include close collaboration between institutions, regionally or internationally; weaning away reliance on a "face-to-face" education model; and using a learner-based, multiple-mode strategy for education delivery.

Quality assurance is a must, so that "second-chance" education does not mean "second-rate" education. To this end, quality enhancement practices share equal importance. The discussions on "Quality assurance in open and distance education," moderated by Mike Robertshaw of the School of Science and Technology, The Open University of Hong Kong, also concluded that implementation of quality assurance practices should produce not only case-by-case results, but a wider institutional "quality culture."

The conference on "Open and distance learning for community and social development" was moderated by Tony Mays, distance education consultant, South Africa; Alan Amory, Director, Centre for Information Technology in Higher Education, University of Natal, South Africa; and Audrey Wyngaard of the Distance Education Unit, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa. The group found that aside from culture (including religion and language), distance and differing ICT levels are strong potential barriers to forming communities; face-to-face interaction, therefore, might be useful to initiate the development process. Ongoing facilitation and moderation can often help foster mutual understanding and a sense of commonality. Conference participants also agreed that if economies of scale are achieved, community development could be supported through ICT at reasonable cost and with significant results, although training in the technology is a prerequisite.

Technicalities

COL provided all technical support for the virtual conferences through the use of Majordomo list management software, running on an "open source" Linux-based system. E-mail use reduced access problems from intermittent or low-bandwidth Internet connectivity and the asynchronous conferencing enabled participation irrespective of time-zone differences. E-mail conferencing also meant that participants did not need any specialised, expensive software or audio-visual equipment. COL also maintained a web-page archive of all postings, updated daily and sortable by date, thread, subject or author, for viewing by registered participants throughout each virtual conference.

Ironically the majority of technical glitches cropped up during the "Quality assurance in open and distance education" conference. Additionally, a heavy daily message volume in some conferences with frequent postings and many participants affected those with limited e-mail account storage or lower-bandwidth Internet connectivity - as well as those with low-tolerance of high e-mail volumes, which is an increasing concern for many these days!

More virtual conferences

Feedback on this year's virtual conference has been positive overall and the discussions have also helped to inform COL's work.

Moderator David Rand said the conference was an opportunity to "draw upon the expertise of others, and allow for the incubation of ideas. We were able to ask for assistance, request and share materials, and build our network of colleagues." And a conference participant noted that she found that the discussions "set the stage for us to plan long-term on how to produce a learning society. Many thanks."

COL will conduct more virtual conferences and another series will be offered as a lead-in to the third Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning, being hosted by the Distance Education Association of New Zealand (DEANZ) in Dunedin, New Zealand from 5 - 8 July 2004.

For more on the virtual conferences and to access moderator summaries, conclusions and recommendations please see www.col.org/virtualconferences. Other Information from the second Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning is archived at www.col.org/pcf2. For the latest on the third Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning (Dunedin, New Zealand, 5 - 8 July 2004), please visit www.deanz.org.nz.