This week, I had a powerful, eye-opening experience learning about remix culture, copyright laws, and how they pertain to education. As an educator, my students are always transforming online materials, by making something new or different from the original, which is the definition of remix culture. Even though the origins of remixing have been around for years, 21st century students are yearning for opportunities to be creators and makers, using online media and other materials.
Remixing is an imaginative and innovative process, and with the guidance of the teacher, students can utilize their creativity and critical thinking skills, while altering existing work to construct new material.
How should teachers and students remix safely and legally in their classrooms? Well, the answer involves understanding copyright laws and the fair use doctrine; both of which can be complicated to comprehend.
Copyright laws are confining, however, under the fair use doctrine, teachers and students can reuse online work lawfully, without permission from the copyright owner for “limited and transformative purposes” (Stim, 2016). Basically, fair use is the exception to copyright laws. According to the doctrine, there are four factors that determine fair use: purpose, nature of the copyrighted work, amount of material, and impact on the market.
I created my own remix video to help other educators learn about fair use and how to reuse online work responsibly. It is imperative that everyone understands fair use doctrine and is respectful of all digital media and materials, so that 21st century students can utilize technology with the safety and knowledge they need.