Copyright Concerns and Open Educational Resources

News item published on: 2016-03-08 09:03:01

University Libraries, in conjunction with the Office of the Provost, is hosting a workshop for all faculty members that will explain copyright basics and their application for open educational resources. The workshop, “Copyright Concerns and Open Educational Resources,” will be held on Wednesday, March 23, at noon in Cook Library 123.

As textbook costs continue to rise, many faculty members across the country have turned to more inexpensive options that can both ease the financial burden on their students and be more tailor-made to address the learning outcomes of the course. In particular, open educational resources (OERs) have risen to prominence on many campuses because they are both free to use and have demonstrated an improvement in student performance in courses that utilize them.

This workshop will first detail several of the basic aspects of copyright that all faculty should know relating to the use of copyrighted materials in their courses. It will then emphasize processes for selecting materials that can be legally incorporated into open textbooks and open educational resources.  Topics covered include fair use, public domain, open access, Creative Commons, and more.

All attendees are encouraged to bring their lunch and join us for this session. Recipients of the first Open Textbook Initiative grant are required to attend, but all faculty are invited. Furthermore, any attendees at this workshop who apply for one of next year’s Open Textbook Initiative grants may count the workshop toward the requirements for next year’s grant if their proposal is selected for funding. Attendees may register for the workshop at https://forms.usm.edu/library/view.php?id=10745.