Using Open Book or other software to read textbooks aloud
- May 21, 2005 @ 3:03pmholly says:Do we need to purchase special rights in order to set up a lab where Open Book or other similar software will read textbooks aloud to students who are unable to read at grade level? Not blind students. Some might be Special Education students.
If we have a volunteer sit beside a student and read aloud, that's OK.
If we have a volunteer record a tape, that's not OK unless we have special permission from the copyright owner.
But what if we have a lab where textbooks are read aloud, and the students "take notes" by recording soundbites?
Thanks in advance for any insight. :?: - May 22, 2005 @ 5:49amAFry says:
If we have a volunteer record a tape, that's not OK unless we have special permission from the copyright owner.
Why do you say this? I don't believe it is true. The government, not the copyright owner, gets to determine what is legal.But what if we have a lab where textbooks are read aloud, and the students "take notes" by recording soundbites?
Any use that is fair use is OK according to 17 U.S.C.A. ยง 107. The problem is that no one can tell you definitively that your use is fair unless a judge makes a determination in your specific case. Fair use must be determined on a case-by-case basis according to the four factors. Here are the four factors followed by my determination. 1. Character of use: commercial or educational. Clearly educational. This factor clearly works in your favor. 2. Nature of work: creative or factual. I think textbooks lean towards factual. However, to be safe, I'm going to assume that this factor works against you. 3. Amount used. The more you use, the more this factor works against you. I'm going to assume that it does work against you. 4. The effect of your use on the market value. Every student gets a textbook, right? No sharing? If this is the case, I believe that your use has no effect on the market value in both situations (volunteer recording tape or Open Book lab). If your use doesn't prevent a textbook from being purchased, there is no effect on the market value. This factor clearly works in your favor. Perhaps the publisher has an audio version of the textbook. Since you are considering purchasing software to solve your problem, I doubt it. However, in that case, you should probably buy 1 copy of the audio version and share it among students. There is no definitive explanation of how much weight to give each factor, but almost everyone agrees that the 4th factor is the important one. I believe that your use is clearly fair use. If I were in your position, I would have the volunteer make the tape. If the publisher finds out and complains, explain fair use. I really doubt that any publisher wants to go to court in this situation. The publisher would be portrayed in the newspapers as the big, bad corporation attacking kids who can't read. So, I would forget about the Open Book lab and go with the cheaper and easier solution because I believe your use is fair. However, you need to make your own determination.
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