Lesson 2, Part 1 Selecting a Creative Commons License
Selecting a License
In collaboration with the author or editor of the content you are creating on EdTech Books, you will need to select a license under which to publish your work. There are several options (see the image below), and it is important to choose a license that reflects your goals for how the work will be used and the impact you wish to have on the world.
As an open publishing platform, we recommend using a Creative Commons License (specifically a CC BY License, but more on that later), as we believe this will help your content make the greatest positive impact. This lesson will help you understand the limitations of traditional copyright and the advantages of Creative Commons Licenses.
Learning Objectives
Understand the benefits of releasing your material under a Creative Commons license.
Thoughtfully select a license that meets both your needs and those of your learners.
Traditional Copyright
Before discussing Creative Commons, it is important to understand traditional copyright and the limitations it poses on learning. Copyright is automatically granted to the creator of anything that is created. Then under the protection of Copyright, others are not allowed to use, copy, modify, or distribute the content without permission.
Watch the following video for a little more detail on copyright.
Learning Check
Now that you have watched the video answer the following question.
In the United States, how long does copyright generally last?
- Until the creator dies
- 70 years after its creation
- 70 years after the creator dies
While Copyright can be beneficial in many situations (e.g. providing incentives to create your favorite TV Show), it is a large inhibitor of the creation and sharing of educational materials such as textbooks, scientific articles, etc.
For your publication on EdTech Books, a traditional copyright license will hinder the goal of helping others by restricting who can use it and how it can be used. If your goal is to create content that can continually adapt and improve and that is available to the most educators and learners possible then a default copyright license will hinder that goal.
Copyright can hinder learning in the following ways:
Limits who can access information.
Copyrighted content is often hidden behind a paywall, so those institutions, teachers, and students with more economic resources often gain access to higher-quality educational resources (e.g. textbooks, learning software, etc.).
Prohibits the adaptation of material.
Each learner and group of students is unique, often requiring adapted resources. Traditional copyright doesn't allow for the adaption of materials to fit the needs of specific groups of students.
Limits collaboration and sharing.
If you obtain permission to use copyrighted material, that permission usually applies only to you, not your colleagues. This limits collaboration, as each person would need separate permission to use the same material, making it harder for teams to build on each other’s work.
Limits innovation and iteration.
Copyrighted material is not allowed without permission to be remixed, revised, or combined with other material. This stifles creativity and prevents the iterative process that can lead to enhanced learning experiences.
Now, we understand that there may be some instances where there may be reasons that you would not want to give people the option of altering your content (e.g. religious or cultural texts). But where possible assigning a Creative Commons license will be the best option.
In-Depth Information
The information in this lesson is meant to provide a brief overview of copyright and Creative Common Licenses to help you select the best license for your needs. For more detailed information about these subjects visit the chapter "Copyright and Open Licensing" in The K-12 Education Technology Handbook.
Creative Commons Licenses and Open Education Resources
Publishing under a Creative Commons license benefits both you and those who will use your material. Creative Commons is a licensing system that allows creators to share their work with more flexibility than traditional copyright law provides, giving creators the ability to specify how their work can be used by others, from full openness to certain restrictions.
By assigning a Creative Commons License to your product, you will be creating an open education resource (OER) or educational product that can be freely used, shared, modified, and distributed.
Watch the following video to learn more about Open Educational Resources (O.E.R.). After you have finished watching the video answer the question below.
Learning Check
Now that you have watched the video answer the following question.
In the context of creating OER, what does remix refer to?
- The right to openly share whatever has been created
- Mixing multiple resources to create a new resource
- Editing a single resource
Benefits of OER & Creative Commons
There are many benefits of publishing your content under a Creative Commons License. Here are 6 of those benefits:
Equity: Promotes equal access to educational materials by removing cost and accessibility barriers.
Cost Savings: Saves students money, allowing them to spend more on other necessities (e.g., food, housing, tuition).
Visibility & Impact: Increases the chances of your work being used by others and in a variety of contexts.
Flexibility: Allows you and others to adapt and improve upon your work.
Collaboration & Community Engagement: Encourages teacher-teacher collaboration and community involvement in the creation process.
Persistence & Availability: Students can stay caught up in class as their resources are available from the beginning of the semester. Students can also access the resources after they have finished the course.
Watch the following video to gain more insight into why educators are choosing to create and use O.E.R.
Selecting a Specific Creative Commons License
There are a total of 7 different Creative Commons licenses that you can choose from that offer a variety of openness (outlined in Table 1). Before you learn about the different licenses, watch the following video to gain a general understanding of what Creative Common Licenses are.
We recommend releasing your content under a CC BY license as this allows for the most freedom and opportunity for those who use your materials in the future. By assigning this license your material is more likely to be used. Also, it is more likely to meet the 5Rs of open education. Letting your material be used in any way will potentially allow amazing things to be made with your content.
Retain - Others can keep their own copy
Revise - Others can adapt the material
Remix - Others can combine your content with other content
Reuse - Others can use their copy publicly
Redistribution - Others can share it
The table below outlines the different Creative Commons licenses that can be chosen.
Table 1
Creative Commons License Brief Explanation Table
License Type | Image | Brief Explanation |
|---|---|---|
Public Domain - Released |  | These works are released to the public domain by their authors before the copyright has expired. |
Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) |  | Others may reuse, redistribute, revise, and remix the creation as long as they cite you. |
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) |  | Others may reuse, redistribute, revise, and remix the creation as long as they cite you and share their creation under an identical license. |
Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs (CC BY-ND) |  | Others may reuse and redistribute the creation as long as they cite you. They may not create a derivative work (e.g., remix or revise it). |
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) |  | Others may reuse, redistribute, revise, and remix the creation as long as they cite you, but they may not use your creation for commercial purposes. |
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA) |  | Others may reuse, redistribute, revise, and remix the creation as long as they cite you and share their creation under an identical license. They may not use your creation for commercial purposes. |
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND) |  | Others may reuse and redistribute the creation as long as they cite you. They may not create a derivative work or use it for commercial purposes. |
Creative Commons License Brief Explanation Table
This table is adapted from a table created by Dr. Royce Kimmons in the chapter "Copyright and Open Licensing" in The K-12 Education Technology Handbook, released under a CC BY license.
Assigning a License to Your Publication
Once a specific license has been selected you can select this license in the settings for your EdTech Publication. Follow the following steps to select a license:
Navigate to your content's title page.
Click on the drop-down menu next to the edit icon.
Select "Settings."
In settings scroll down to the section labeled "Copyright."
Select a license.
Next - Lesson 2, Part 2 Complying with Copyright
Now that you have completed Lesson 2, Part 1, move on to Lesson 2, Part 2 Complying with Copyright.