Legal and Ethical Contexts In My Digital Practice

Legal and Ethical Contexts in My Digital Practice

Mindlab Week 29

As part of my role within our primary school library I run a small but busy computer suite. Students use these computers to publish work and research information from the internet. The suite is used by all levels within the school and students may work independently or collaboratively. The problem I am faced with on a daily basis is a complacency towards plagiarism and copyright. So what is the difference between plagiarism and copyright? Plagiarism is literary theft, and occurs when a writer duplicates another writer’s ideas or language and then calls it their own whereas copyright is a legal right created by the law of a country that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights for its use and distribution. That work may be literary, artistic or musical. Although plagiarism is unethical it is not illegal. Breach of copyright, copying a specific sequence of words, however, is illegal. It should also be pointed out that the copyright holder is not necessarily the same person as the author. 

Teaching staff recognise the issues around plagiarism but I personally don't think enough is being done to address this issue within our school. I also feel that there is a complacency from some staff members towards copyright laws. We should assume, unless otherwise stated, that copyright applies to all works created, and this includes the internet, whether or not it has a copyright symbol or a copyright statement attached. As professionals, teachers are bound by a “Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards”. These responsibilities include teaching and continuously encouraging our students to be responsible digital citizens. A key aspect to teaching this behaviour is good modelling. We should all, teachers, support staff and whanau, be setting an example in regard to this issue.

I see my role within the library as supporting our students to become responsible digital citizens. The National Library of New Zealand considers these values as important when teaching our students to be responsible digital citizens.

• ·         Students need to act both responsibly and ethically,
• ·         Students need to be accountable for their actions
• ·         Students should be respectful of intellectual property and other legal protections.                          

      When I checked our school docs it stated that all staff were expected to follow the guidelines and provisions described on the Copyright in Schools website and to observe the conditions of any creative commons licences applied. From this I can see that the school has obviously considered these issues and the laws governing intellectual property and copyright but perhaps not all staff are aware of these policies. We all have a responsibility towards supporting our students with the ethical issues they will and are facing as members of the digital world. 

      I need to address this dilemma in a proactive way by ensuring that staff and students alike are aware of the laws governing copyright and intellectual property and encouraging students when researching and publishing work to acknowledge sources and avoid plagiarism. There is a need for more discussion around these issues with both staff and students and it needs to be more of a focus in my digital literacy classes. 

Education Council. (n.d). The Education Council Code of Ethics for Certificated Teachers. Retrieved from https://educationcouncil.org.nz/sites/default/files/Our%20Code%20Our%20Standards%20web%20booklet%20FINAL.pdf

Hall, A. (2001). What ought I to do, all things considered? An approach to the exploration of ethical problems by teachers. Paper presented at the IIPE Conference, Brisbane. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Culture/Developing-leaders/What-Ought-I-to-Do-All-Things-Considered-An-Approach-to-the-Exploration-of-Ethical-Problems-by-Teachers

http://creativecommons.org.nz/ccinschools/ (video clip on CC)