News & Events
September 29, 2004
Sharing Educational Resources: Creating Copyright Policy That Works for Creators and Users
By Brian Lamb, Office of Learning Technology
Perhaps no issue hampers the free exchange of online learning materials more than confusion over intellectual property ( IP ) rights. Creators of resources, even those who want to share their materials, worry about surrendering all their rights if their work is available online. Instructors and course designers who might be interested in reusing learning resources often have no way of knowing if they are able to do so, or what the terms or limitations for reuse might be.
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"This approach diverges from traditional practice and the BC Commons option provides a half-step toward sharing with the world by sharing first among the 27 public post-secondary institutions here in BC.”
— Paul Stacey, Director of Development, BCCampus |
While international copyright law has tended to become more complicated and restrictive over time, a number of global initiatives have taken on the task of constructing more flexible frameworks to balance the interests of content creators with those of users.
Perhaps the most promising of these efforts is the Creative Commons project, which is achieving impressive levels of adoption world-wide. Among the spin-offs inspired by Creative Commons is a modified open sharing license commissioned and supported by BCCampus, one that promises to foster freer exchange of quality learning resources in British Columbia and beyond.
Barriers to Sharing
It is widely, though not universally, agreed that sharing educational resources is a noble and vital part of a university's mission. In the words of Charles Vest, President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology -- which is making almost all of its course materials available on the Web free of charge - the vision of open access "is based on the twin values of opportunity and openness. These are values that have made our universities and our nation strong. They are values that will keep our world safe and strong."
Many creators of educational materials are inclined to agree. Yet most learning content continues to languish, hidden away on private hard drives and password-protected proprietary course sites. A growing number of instructors at UBC, in the context of workshops and focus group interviews, have indicated that they are willing to share their work.
But they commonly cite three concerns that prevent them from doing so:
1) They want to ensure attribution from those who reuse their resources.
2) They are worried that others may take their free materials and subsequently commercialize them.
3) They sometimes worry that their works may be modified inappropriately, endangering the integrity of their resources and potentially damaging their own professional reputation.
Enter Creative Commons
Creative Commons (CC) is a collective of legal and content experts who are taking inspiration from the open source software community. They are creating frameworks for people to dedicate their creative works to the public domain, or to retain their copyright while licensing them for free under certain conditions.
Perhaps the most compelling argument for the CC approach rests on the section of their site where creators are invited to choose the license they want. With a few clicks on a simple web form, copyright holders can generate a vetted license that allows them to specify if they require attribution, if they will permit commercial use, and if they will allow modifications to their work and under what conditions. Creators are able to register their work and specify terms of use, and users are able to quickly determine if they can reuse the materials and what they are allowed to do with them.
Under the leadership of learning object and open content guru David Wiley, an additional modification to the license has been developed. This one allows copyright holders to further specify conditions for reuse to educational institutions and/or developing nations.
All very promising. But questions remain: is the Creative Commons framework applicable in Canada? Can more specific limitations be defined to foster sharing within consortia? And who is going to demonstrate leadership and prove that a more open content sharing model can work in the real world?
Enter BCCampus
Over the past eighteen months BCCampus has dispensed $3 million dollars of Online Program Development Fund grant money for the creation of online learning resources at the universities, university colleges, colleges, and institutes in British Columbia. The fund is supporting development of online courses, virtual labs, learning objects, and online learning tools.
A key question that quickly emerged was how to define IP rights for projects that received BCCampus funds. Paul Stacey, Director of Development for BCCampus, notes that "although it provides funding, BCCampus makes no intellectual property claim on the digital asset." Nonetheless, it has a mandate to foster sharing amongst the 27 public post secondary institutions in the province.
BCCampus has chosen to adapt and adopt the Creative Commons framework and approach.
"Adaptation of the CC license in our case meant creating a derivative license, BC Commons, which essentially constrains sharing to the BC public post-secondary system rather than the CC model of sharing with the world," said Stacey.
The organization hired legal experts to vet and adapt the CC license for their needs and local context. One of the happy outcomes is that in the opinion of their legal consultants, the CC framework will likely apply in Canadian law. BCCampus has also modified the license to allow for broader application and to allay the fears of developers who remain nervous about the open content model.
"I don't believe a one-size-fits-all approach would work well," Stacey said. "Some developers are excited by the idea of sharing and models like open source, and they are keen to get their content out there into the world and as widely used as possible. These developers want as much adoption and input from others into continuous improvement as possible. Most of these developers are choosing the Creative Commons licenses.
"Others are less sure about the whole idea of sharing, are very fearful about the loss of control and worry about the personal impact this might have on them as well as the bigger picture impact this might have on the system as a whole. This approach diverges from traditional practice and the BC Commons option provides a half-step toward sharing with the world by sharing first among the 27 public post-secondary institutions here in BC."
In addition to allowing for greater control over the extent of sharing, the BCCampus approach also strives, in Stacey's words, "to provide a middle ground between the open and free approach, and the closed and proprietary approach."
Developers who adopt the BC Commons license are free to try to sell their content outside the province. "We'd love to see the original developers of content leverage that by trying to cut deals outside of the province that generate royalties or license fees," he said.
In the spirit of openness, BCCampus is sharing its new license and additional information for others interested in this approach on its website using the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license.
Creative Commons Under Canadian Law
On another front, the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC) has been "officially" charged with translating the Creative Commons licence for use under Canadian law. A draft version of the Canadian CC licence has been released, with an "official launch" set for Thursday, September 30th.
While the issues related to intellectual property and sharing in higher education are complex and require more work, there's no question that useful models are emerging to address the concerns of content developers and consumers.
More Information
Contact: Brian Lamb brian.lamb@ubc.ca
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UBC's e-Strategy enables students, faculty and staff to excel in one of the world's leading universities by enhancing learning, research and community through leading-edge technology initiatives.
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