Copyrighting...

Copyright is a very touchy and serious topic. There are many rules that the average joe or jane is unaware of. The two days that copyrighting wad discussed in class and after reading about copyrighting I have learned only a small portion of the rules and regulations of copyrighting. Once a person writes a paper it is considered theirs, I always thought there were papers that needed be filled out and legal processes that a person needed to go through to copyright a piece of work. People can copyright their own personal works for a fee of $35 if they fell, someone might take their work. This is not necessary, but just an extra precaution. I was surprised that the fee was so high, but I guess that’s the price you have to pay when you want to protect your work. I was shocked when I learned that works from the public domain, and short sayings cannot be copyrighted. After thinking about it for a little bit, this makes sense because Paris Hilton wanted to copyright the phase “That’s hot” and she was unable to do so.
I have had some occurrences in which teachers have violated copyright laws. A couple of teachers have recorded a TV show to show the class, and this show was not only shown once, but from year to year. Also, I have had one teacher who copied numerous pages out of a textbook and disturbed them to the class; they did this because they did not want to have to buy the textbook for only a few pages. Teachers have also used pictures in their powerpoints without giving credit to where they got it.
I believe it is my responsibility as a teacher to teach students about copyright laws. This needs to be taught, so children do not get in major trouble and get fined lots of money. Students should understand and know the information all throughout their educational years. This way, they will know what is right to do and what is wrong to do from the beginning. Copying textbook materials, songs, books ect and not paying for it is illegal. The person who created the information is not getting rewarded for their work and that is not fair. Students are not allowed to copy another person’s work in a paper, why should they be allowed to copy and distribute whole textbooks? As a teacher I will follow the copyrighting laws. I do not need to be brought up on changes by the government and pay lot and lots of money. Teachers need to practice and do what they are telling their students to do. Teachers should not have additional rules; they should follow the rules like everyone else. I will make sure to show my students that I have followed all the copyrighting rules, to let them know that everyone has to follow the rules.