Copyright and your teaching

Understanding how copyright applies to teaching. If you need further advice please contact copyright@ucl.ac.uk.

Copyright law determines what you may or may not do with someone else's work. By default, you need permission from the copyright owner to reproduce, adapt or distribute someone else's work (e.g. documents, images, film) in your teaching and other activities. 

Likewise, copyright law protects your own work. If you have kept the rights to your work, others cannot reuse it without your permission. 

Understanding how copyright applies to teaching is important, not only to comply with the law and respect creators' rights, but also to benefit from copyright exceptions as they apply to education and the use of open licences in open education. This page focusses both on legal restrictions and what is possible under UK copyright law, the licences provided by UCL and open licences. Guidance is also provided on supporting your students' understanding of copyright.

Using others' materials in your teaching

Your course readings 

Can I scan a resource (for example, a book) and make it available to my students?

If you want to digitise a resource in your course readings, you are advised to add it to your reading list, specifying which extracts you wish to digitise. The Teaching and Learning Services team (TLS team) checks what is permitted and, where possible, digitises the resource for you. More information can be found on the Reading Lists webpage. 

You are strongly advised to use reading lists to request digitosation, instead of adding digitised copies to Moodle. This ensures compliance with copyright and with the licences we have in place. You can still link your reading list to Moodle.

Materials that you may want to use in your teaching are usually under copyright. This means that they may not be copied without permission. UCL has a licence from the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) that allows us to provide digitised copies of book extracts, journal articles and other works for student course materials. There are restrictions as to what can be scanned and how much can be scanned under the terms of the licence. Adding resources to your reading list means that the TLS team can ensure that scanning is in line with the terms of the licence. Scanning activity is also recorded for reporting to the CLA.

What are the conditions of the CLA licence?

The CLA licence sets the following conditions:

• The work to be copied must be covered by the licence. The licence mainly includes UK publications, but many overseas publications are also covered. However, there are also excluded countries and publications.  Which ones are covered and what is allowed in every case varies; particularly when it comes to scanning. You can use the CLA  permissions tool to check if a particular work is covered and what is allowed under the licence.
• UCL must own a copy or subscription to the work. 
• There are limits to how much can be copied. Currently these are: up to one chapter from a book, one whole article from a journal issue or 10% of the work; whichever is the greatest. The CLA guidance specifies limits for other types of materials. These limits apply to all editions of the same work, i.e. you may not copy an extra 10% from another edition. CLA posters reminding you of these limits is displayed next to copying machines in UCL libraries and in departments.
• Any member of staff or student at UCL can copy under the terms of the licence. However, for copies made for students on a particular course, there are additional storage and reporting requirements: designated members of staff at UCL do the scanning and ensure the requirements are met.

Can I make photocopies from books or articles for students on my course?

Under the terms of the CLA licence, you can. The conditions of the licence are displayed on posters next to copying machines on campus. 

What if the material I want to use is out of copyright?

If you are certain that the work is out of copyright, then there are no limits imposed by the licence. Typically the copyright term in the UK for literary, musical, dramatic and artistic works the life of the author plus 70 years, calculated from the end of the calendar year in which the author died. However, there are variations to this, particularly for unpublished works. There is a fixed date of the end of 2039 when a very large amount of older unpublished works comes out of copyright. Please see guidance from the UK Intellectual Property Office or contact copyright@ucl.ac.uk for advice.

What if I am the author of the book or article? Can I share it with my students?

Not necessarily. You should check your publishing agreement (or contact your publisher) as this will determine whether you have kept the copyright to your work/the right to reuse it in teaching and under what conditions. If you have kept these rights, then you can share with your students. If the copyright or an exlusive licence has been granted to the publisher, and nothing in the agreement says you may reuse in teaching, permission or a licence is necessary.

What if the work is open access?

To be "open access", the work must be not only publicly available but also licensed for reuse. If the work is under an open licence, such as a Creative Commons Commons Attribution licence, then you can reuse it in your teaching without the need for permission or a licence. You must attribute the author and meet the licence requirements. See information on Creative Commons licences. Similarly, Crown or government works under the the Open Government Licence (OGL) may also be used.

Can I use resources in my teaching without permission if the use is educational/fair dealing?

In many cases, you may be able to. UK copyright law defines specific purposes for which copying may be permitted without permission. These are known as "copyright exceptions" or "permitted uses". Many of these exceptions are very useful in Higher Education, but they apply in specific circumstances. When relying upon a copyright exception we need to be reasonably sure that we fulfil the conditions.

The most relevant fair dealing exception for teaching is the "illustration for instruction" exception, which is to be found in Section 32 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA). The exception can apply to copyright-protected content in any medium, text, graphics, images, film etc.

1. The use must be "fair dealing". Fair dealing is not defined by the legislation, but these are the questions to ask when considering relying on the exception: (a) Could you be harming the interests of the copyright owner? For example, if you were reproducing a large proportion of a published work and then  making it available to a large audience, you could be damaging the market for the author’s original work and it would not be fair dealing. (b) You should consider whether you are using more of the work than is really justified by your purpose. You need to take a view about fair dealing based on the specific work, how much of it you want to use and how you plan to use it.
2. It needs to be for a non-commercial purpose. We can assume that regular HE courses qualify as non-commercial.
3. It must be carried out by “… a person giving or receiving instruction” but it’s fine if other UCL staff are involved in preparing the material.
4. There must be adequate acknowledgement of author and source.
5. The exception cannot be overridden by the terms of a contract. For example, if the terms of our contract with the publisher of an e-journal state that we cannot upload extracts into our VLE, that will not legally prevent us from doing so, provided it is “fair dealing” in the particular circumstances and therefore covered by the exception.

The “fair dealing” copyright exceptions are there to be used and in the current circumstances they should be particularly helpful in teaching. It is often not possible to be 100% sure that a specific exception applies. It comes down to informed judgement, based on your view of the risk. If you firmly believe that your use of the work will be “fair dealing” then you should feel empowered to go ahead. If in doubt, please contact copyright@ucl.ac.uk for advice.

When relying upon the teaching exception, it helps our claim that what we are doing is fair dealing if we make the content available exclusively to UCL staff and students in a secure environment such as Moodle. Ideally access should be limited to the students taking the relevant module. That supports our claim that it is for a non-commercial educational purpose. The limited audience may also reduce potential harm to the interests of the copyright owner.

If the library subscribes to an e-journal, can I add a PDF of an article in Moodle for my students to access?

It is advisable to add a link to the article to your reading list instead of adding the PDF. Likewise, you are advised to link to an e-resource instead of making multiple copies, which can only be authorised for certain publications (under the CLA Licence). 

Images 

How can I use images (including figures) from published papers or books in my online teaching material in Moodle?

• If the source publication is covered by the CLA licence, you may include images (either as whole-page images or extracted from a page that also includes text) in your online materials.
• If the source publication is covered by a Creative Commons licence which also covers the images, then you will be able to use the images without permission. It is important to check that you are complying with the terms of the specific Creative Commons licence.
• You may also rely on a copyright exception, particularly the "illustration for instruction" exception. The use of a secure online environment such as Moodle makes it more likely that you reuse of copyright protected material will be fair dealing and that you can, therefore, rely on the exception. Sharing images more widely, such as in a publicly available blog or wiki, should be approached with caution.

Can I rely on "fair dealing" to include images in my lecture materials? What if the lecture is recorded and shared on Moodle?

You can rely on the "illustration for instruction" exception to include images in a live lecture if your use is 'fair dealing'. If it is fair dealing to include images (or text)  in a live-streamed lecture then, in all likelihood, it will also be fair dealing to include the same material in a recording of the lecture or in other learning material which can be accessed by students in a secure network. Different considerations apply to showing videos and films (see separate section).

Please note the following:

• Images found on the web are still protected by copyright and not necessarily free to re-use. Unless they are shared under a licence explicitly allowing reuse (such as a Creative Commons licence), please assume that you need permission. This applies to uncredited images as well.  
• For copyright-protected images, you can rely on the "illustration for instruction" exception if the images are relevant to and support your teaching (i.e. they are not just decorative)  and their use does jot damage the commercial interests of the copyright owner. It is generally safer to use lower resolution or cropped versions.
• You must acknowledge the copyright holder. Use captions that include information about the source (creator, copyright information, any disclaimers or licensing terms shared with the original image)  (your image caption or credits should reiterate any copyright statement or licence terms indicated at the source).
• If you feel fair dealing is not justified, you must get permission to reuse. You may also want to use alternatives that are openly licensed. The Creative Commons search page can be very useful if you need to find images which are licensed for reuse, particularly if a more generic image would be suitable. The UCL Copyright resources reading list also includes lists of websites which offer free resources which are licensed for reuse. You should always check the terms and conditions attached to any images you intend to use.

Film and music

How can I use films for teaching purposes?

Showing films to an audience is an activity restricted by copyright, but there are some useful options available:

• UCL has a licence from the Educational Recording Agency (ERA) which allows you to record live television and radio broadcasts (including broadcast feature films) to be used for educational purposes with UCL audiences.
• The most convenient way of using the ERA licence to provide access to broadcast material is via the web-based BoB service (Box of Broadcasts), a vast database of many types of broadcast material, to which UCL subscribes. This is accessible to all UCL staff and students via the BoB website using your UCL log-in. BoB offers a database of recent broadcasts and listings of future broadcasts. It includes films which have been shown on the major TV channels. It permits embedding, playlists and recording clips. Access is usually limited to viewers based in the UK. You can select the items of interest and store them on your account. You can set up playlists and share them with UCL students. You can also link to content in BoB from UCL Reading Lists.
• The Kanopy streaming service, which UCL subscribes to, is another source of films that can be used for educational purposes. It enables you to provide links to films included in the service. You can build your own playlists and record clips. It is described in more detail in this blog post.
• If you have a lawfully acquired copy of the film you wish to show in any format, there is also an exception in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 Section 34 which allows you to show it on UCL premises to an audience of UCL students and staff for educational purposes.

None of the copyright exceptions apply to film clubs, which need a licence to show specific films.

It is always preferable to use the above subscription services where possible, as we have a licence with clear terms and conditions to access films for teaching and learning purposes.

Am I allowed to use recorded music at a UCL event I am organising or in my teaching? Do I need a licence?

If you are using recorded music for a teaching activity on UCL premises and your audience consists entirely of UCL students and staff, then the copyright exception in Section 34(2) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 is likely to cover you. If the exception applies, no licence is required. The wording of the exception is that it must be "for the purposes of instruction".

On the other hand, if you are inviting people from outside UCL to your event, then the exception would not apply, even if the music has an educational purpose. The same will be true if playing the music has no educational purpose (such as providing background music). If the exception does not help, you will need to apply for a licence to cover your event. The two big licensing bodies, PRS for Music and PPL, offer a joint licence covering the music of your choice, in return for a fee. Further details can be found on the PRS/PPL website.

There are also websites which offer music to be reused free of charge, usually under generous licences. Some are listed on the UCL Copyright resources reading list. Bear in mind that the choice of music will be limited and you should always be careful to adhere to the terms of the particular site.

Can I show a film in my lecture?

Yes, you can, as long as the film is being shown on UCL premises for the purpose of "instruction" and to an audience consisting entirely of UCL students and staff. Naturally it must also be a legitimate copy of the film, such as a DVD which has been purchased. This stems from a very useful exception in Section 34(2) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, but it is important that we fulfil all the criteria, otherwise the exception will not be valid and we may be infringing copyright.

Please note also that UCL Library subscribes to a service called BoB (Box of Broadcasts), a streaming service covering a large amount of broadcast material from various TV channels. If you locate a relevant film on BoB our licence permits you to stream it for a UCL audience for educational purposes. This blog post gives further information.

On the other hand events such as film club showings which are not for the purpose of "instruction" and may include external participants will need a licence.