Copyright

Of course, you’ll want to provide learners with the best and most relevant information in your learning object. But, will you have the right to use the material you find? While developing your content and searching for the best material to use, you’ll probably have to address copyright issues on some level.

In all scenarios, you first need to determine if the material requires permission to use. The University of Minnesota copyright decision map is a helpful tool: http://www.lib.umn.edu/copyright/map.phtml

When a learning object is to be used only in a course with access restricted to those enrolled in the course, you create a classroom environment with more latitude for the fair use of copyrighted material. The Association of Research libraries provides a useful FAQ for online class use: http://www.knowyourcopyrights.org/resourcesfac/faq/online.shtml