Library Locations | Ask a Librarian | CCSF HomeSome faculty like to create course packs that are made up of articles and other potentially copyrighted materials in lieu of traditional textbooks. It is the responsibility of faculty to ensure that the content in these bundles have copyright clearance. The CCSF Bookstore can not sell them if they do not have copyright clearance.
The good news is that the CCSF Bookstore provides a service that clears copyright, prints, and packages. Contact the bookstore to find out details. Tip: the first time you do this, give the bookstore plenty of lead time. The bookstore can provide information about the cost to clear each article and faculty may want to make modifications if a specific article costs too much.
Other options include:
As always, subject librarians are available to support you with these decisions.
This work by CCSF Library is licensed by City College of San Francisco under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Responsibility for copyright usage falls on the shoulders of the content user. Faculty are expected to follow good copyright practices and make thoughtful determinations as to whether their use of copyright material is considered Fair Use. The Library can support faculty in this determination by providing additional resources on copyright and fair use.
The College is responsible for communicating these expectations, and for providing training and resources. This guide is one way for the College to support this responsibility. Faculty should consult this guide, and are encouraged to work with the subject librarian to get additional information on copyright when they have questions.
The College and the library seek to support fair use whenever possible.
| Type | Face to face | Online |
|---|---|---|
| Article |
If the Library has an electronic version of the article, use a permanent link to the article (eg. in your Canvas shell and/or your syllabus). See: Linking to Articles. If the article is available legally on the web, link to the article. If not, you will need to conduct a fair use analysis before scanning or copying the article for your class. See the section on Course Packs below. |
If the Library has an electronic version of the article, use a permanent link to the article (eg. in your Canvas shell and/or your syllabus). See: Linking to Articles. If the article is available legally on the web, link to the article. If not, you will need to conduct a fair use analysis before scanning or copying the article for your class. |
| Book Chapter |
Place a print copy of a book on reserve at the library. See: Reserves If the Library has the ebook, put a permanent link to the ebook in your readings list. If not, conduct a fair use analysis before scanning or copying the chapter for your class. |
If the Library has the ebook, put a permanent link to the ebook in your readings list. If not, conduct a fair use analysis before scanning or copying the chapter for your class. |
| YouTube | Linking to a YouTube video is permitted. If embedding code is provided, it is fine to embed. Be sure to attribute the creator. Avoid any video that you suspect is not a legal copy, not least because it could be taken down by YouTube at any time. | Linking to a YouTube video is permitted. If embedding code is provided, it is fine to embed. Be sure to attribute the creator. Avoid any video that you suspect is not a legal copy, not least because it could be taken down by YouTube at any time. |
| DVD | The Classroom exception permits you to show DVDs without limitation, provided that the DVD is legally made and acquired. |
Streaming a DVD in an online class will need to be permitted by the TEACH Act or be a fair use. The TEACH Act specifically forbids copying an entire DVD. Fair use could conceivably permit it but a very rigorous analysis and justification would need to be provided. Portions necessary to serve your pedagogical purpose may be streamed to students. You will need to think through your purposes for including the content from the DVD and limit your use to only the necessary portions. The TEACH Act specifically allows: "The performance of a nondramatic literary or musical work or reasonable and limited portions of any other work”; the DVD must be a legal copy and the content cannot be mediated educational programming. as long as “The performance or display is made by, at the direction of, or under the actual supervision of an instructor as an integral part of a class session offered as a regular part of the systematic mediated instructional activities.“ |
| CCSF licensed streaming content |
CCSF Library has licensed content you can embed in your classes. See: Faculty Guide to Streaming Video |
CCSF Library has licensed content you can embed in your classes. See: Faculty Guide to Streaming Video |
| Content from Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, etc. | No. Generally subscription streaming services' Terms of Use specify personal use only. | Students must use their own personal subscriptions to these services. |
| Images |
Showing legally acquired images in the classroom is permitted. If you post a slide deck to Canvas, consider removing any copyrighted material unless you have done a fair use analysis and determined that it is likely to be fair. Consider using the Library's licensed content or Creative Commons licensed content from the web. |
Creative Commons licensed, public domain, or library-licensed material can be used. Otherwise, conduct a fair use analysis. |
| Figures, charts & graphs | Permissible to use, with attribution. If the chart or graph is creative in its display of information (as opposed to something that anyone could reproduce exactly given the same data), conduct a fair use analysis. | Permissible to use, with attribution. If the chart or graph is creative in its display of information (as opposed to something that anyone could reproduce exactly given the same data), conduct a fair use analysis. |
| Music from a CD | Okay to use. | See "DVD" above. |
| Live music performance | Yes, permitted by the classroom exemption. | N/A. |
| Sending content via email | It is better to send a link than to send an attachment. Much of the details listed above for posting things online will be similar with email but posting in Canvas will make any fair use argument stronger and is more convenient for students. | It is better to send a link than to send an attachment. Much of the details listed above for posting things online will be similar with email but posting in Canvas will make any fair use argument stronger and is more convenient for students. |
| Student work | Get permission from the student in writing and keep that documentation. Both copyright and FERPA apply. See: FERPA and Privacy Rights of Students | Get permission from the student in writing and keep that documentation. Both copyright and FERPA apply. See: FERPA and Privacy Rights of Students |