Title: Educational Institutions Policies and Practices

Learning Objectives

- Recognize that educational institutions can rely on both fair dealing and educational exceptions outlined in the Copyright Act
- Understand and be able to explain the role of fair dealing guidelines in an educational context

What is institutional copying?
Institutional copying is copying done on behalf of the institution. This could include copying done by professors for their classes, for example. For this kind of copying, it is important to consult the institution’s fair dealing guidelines to determine whether the copying conforms with institutional standards

Fair dealing issues in the Alberta (Education) case
It is important to note that the Alberta (Education) v. Access Copyright case centred on contested interpretations of fair dealing for the purposes of private study and research not education.  When the case was initially litigated education was not a purpose under fair dealing.  Both the Supreme Court decision and the inclusion of education as a fair dealing purpose in the Copyright Act occurred in 2012.

Whom do fair dealing guidelines apply to?
Fair dealing guidelines are normally intended to apply only to institutional copying. However, they can also be a good reference point for students reproducing materials for private study.

Q: Select the organization(s) or institution(s) that have created fair dealing guidelines and resources that you can reference:
- Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC)
- Universities of Alberta, Ottawa and Toronto
- Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT)
- All of the above (correct)

Q: An institution’s fair dealing guidelines, if followed, are:
- A replacement for the full fair dealing analysis outlined by by the Supreme Court of Canada
- Expected to yield a result consistent with a full fair dealing analysis as outlined by the Supreme Court of Canada in the vast majority of cases, but are not a replacement (correct)
- Like seasonal tires and should be changed every six months

Q: Educational staff and teachers can refer to both the fair dealing exception to infringement and the specific educational exceptions in the Copyright Act.
A: true

Choose the correct statement.

Credits: Educational Institution's Policies and Practices; by University of Alberta; 2020; licence CC BY 4.0