Creative Commons

"We stand on the shoulders of giants by revisiting, reusing, and transforming the ideas and works of our peers and predecessors", proclaimed Creative Commons (2002) when announcing the development of a set of tools to facilitate the sharing of content in the digital age. The Creative Commons movement grew from a desire to provide an alternative to what was seen as the restrictive nature of Copyright laws in an environment where advances in technology made it easy for people to share, reuse and remix content (Fitzgerald & Hooper, 2013).

The emphasis on creativity and innovation is highlighted in this video where some of those closely linked to Creative Commons reflect on the desire to promote community and connection, creativity and access by providing a means for people to share their content through licences that enable people to choose to reserve some of their rights, rather than all of their rights.

In the years since 2002, when the first series of licences based on US laws were released, they have become more international in focus, reflecting our global community. Version 4.0, released in 2013, were designed to work anywhere. The State of the Nation report (2015) illustrates how widely accepted they have become internationally. Visit the website to view the statistics.

The following digital artefact provides a brief introduction to Creative Commons for teachers. It explores the notion that students are both creators and consumers of content and, as such, have corresponding rights and responsibilities. Teachers have a responsibility to model ethical practices in the classroom.

This engaging and informative video reinforces the Creative Commons message that ours is a world where sharing, reusing and remixing content should be valued and facilitated through the use of CC licences.

The Licences

This infographic provides an overview of the six standard Creative Commons licences.

For students, this infographic explains the elements of each licence.

The infographic below presents the licences from the most open at the top - Copyright-Zero or Public Domain - to the most restrictive - Copyright - at the bottom.

Test your knowledge of Creative Commons

Commonsense Media from the United States have produced a unit of work called A creator's rights (Years 6-8) which explores students' rights as creators.

Also from the US, Rodgers and Fontichiaro's eBook Shared creations: Making use of Creative Commons on copyright and Creative Commons licences provides a clear explanation for junior students.

Explore further

References

Appino, R. (2015, November 16). CC search with CogDog's geeky Flickr attribution tool [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bov-jw7pGuk

The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation & Creative Commons Australia. (n.d.). Attributing Creative Commons materials [Fact sheet]. Retrieved from http://creativecommons.org.au/content/attributingccmaterials.pdf

Common Sense Media. (2016). A creator's rights (6-8). Retrieved from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/lesson/creators-rights-6-8

Creative Commons. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://creativecommons.org

Creative Commons. (2002, October 16). Creative Commons announced [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://blog.creativecommons.org/2002/10/16/creativecommonsannounced-2/

Creative Commons. (n.d.). Education. Retrieved from https://creativecommons.org/education/

Creative Commons. (2015). State of the nation. Retrieved from https://stateof.creativecommons.org/report/

Creative Commons (2009, August 17). Wanna work together?[Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0VzUigrb_g

Creative Commons Aotearoa New Zealand. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://creativecommons.org.nz/

Creative Commons Aotearoa New Zealand. (2011). Creative Commons kiwi [Video file]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/25684782

Creative Commons Australia. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://creativecommons.org.au/

Creative Commons Australia. (n.d.). Education. Retrieved from http://creativecommons.org.au/learn/education/

Fitzgerald, A. & Hooper, N. (2013, December 19). Explainer: Creative Commons [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/explainer-creative-commons-21341

FreeForm. (2009, September 10). Creative Commons: A shared culture [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOsfpLUBOcs&feature=youtu.be

Lenhart, A., Madden, M., Smith, A., & Macgill, A. (2007, December 19).Teens creating content. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/2007/12/19/teens-creating-content/

Lucas, A. (2016, April 22). Creative Commons: An introduction for teachers [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/edit?video_id=622OHuEMM38

Lucier, R. (2010). Creative Commons: What every educator needs to know [Video file]. Retrieved from https://dotsub.com/view/b2ead831-4a4e-4530-94d8-381558cfecec

Missfeldt, M. (n.d.). What does Creative Commons mean? Retrieved from http://www.bildersuche.org/en/creative-commons-infographic.php

National Copyright Unit, Copyright Advisory Groups (Schools and TAFE). (n.d.). Quick reference guide to finding Creative Commons material. Retrieved from http://www.smartcopying.edu.au/open-education/creative-commons/creative-commons-information-pack-for-teachers-and-students/quick-reference-guide-to-finding-creative-commons-material

National Copyright Unit, Copyright Advisory Groups (Schools and TAFE). (n.d.). What is Creative Commons?: Creative Commons information pack for teachers and students. Retrieved from http://www.smartcopying.edu.au/open-education/creative-commons/creative-commons-information-pack-for-teachers-and-students/what-is-creative-commons-

Rodgers, E. P. & Fontichiaro, K. (2013). Shared creations: Making use of Creative Commons. Retrieved from http://fontichiaro.com/uploads/2014/sharedcreations.pdf

Valenza, J. (n.d.). A copyright-friendly toolkit: For makers and other media creators. Retrieved from https://www.smore.com/f677-a-copyright-friendly-toolkit

Valenza, J. (2011). Opening gates: On celebrating Creative Commons and flexing the fair use muscle. Library Media Connection, 29(4), 30-32. Retrieved from http://www.abc-clio.com/LibrariesUnlimited.asp