4 Creative Commons Licenses
Australian teacher Kathleen Morris wrote a blog post in the summer of 2021 called “The Educator’s Guide to Copyright, Fair Use, and Creative Commons” that you may find helpful as well, but keep in mind that copyright and fair use may be different in Australia than where you are. Before we look at Creative Commons licenses, want to draw your attention to her list of the “5 main rules you need to remember about copyright” to remind you about some of the restrictions of copyright, the ethics around using copyrighted work, and some of the benefits of using Creative Commons licensed materials.
- Just because you found it online, doesn’t mean it’s free to use (even if you’re a teacher or student).
- There are a lot of resources you can use freely including work that has a Creative Commons license or is in the public domain.
- You have a right as a creator to have your work protected from copying and you can also give your own content a Creative Commons license.
- If in doubt about using content, ask the creator for permission, find a free alternative, make your own material, or purchase an alternative that has the usage rights you’re after.
- Instead of looking for loopholes, consider whether you’re being the most responsible and ethical digital citizen you can be.
Creative Commons
As you’ve already learned, fair dealing has its limits. It can also be confusing. In this section, we’re going to look at Creative Commons licenses and how they can make finding, using, and sharing learning materials easier.
The Licenses
There isn’t one Creative Commons license, but several. Each allows the creator of the work to give specific permission for what others can do with the work they created.
The team at BCcampus created a some great content explaining the licenses, and because they put a Creative Commons license on it, I’m able to modify it and share it here.
The copyright licences offered through Creative Commons grant specific permissions depending on the licence you choose for your work. The licences include:
CC BY
Attribution (BY) – This licence allows others to distribute, change, remix, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation. This licence gives anyone using your work the most permissions.
CC BY-SA
Attribution (BY) ShareAlike (SA) – This licence allows others to distribute, change, remix, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation. This licence is often compared to open source software licences. You, and anyone using your new version of this work, must release these adaptations with the same (“share alike”) CC BY-SA licence.
CC BY-NC
Attribution (BY) NonCommercial (NC) – This licence allows others to distribute, change, remix, and build upon your work as long as they credit you for the original creation. However, they cannot sell it or profit from it except to recuperate the costs of printing, for example. It is a nonprofit licence.
CC BY-NC-SA
Attribution (BY) NonCommercial (NC) ShareAlike (SA) – This licence allows others to distribute, change, remix, and build upon your work as long as they credit you for the original creation. However, you cannot sell it or profit from it except to recuperate the costs of printing, for example. It is a nonprofit licence. You, and anyone using your new version of this work, must release these adaptations with the same (“share alike”) CC BY-NC-SA licence.
CC BY-ND
Attribution (BY) NoDerivatives (ND) – This licence allows for redistribution, commercial and non-commercial, as long as it is passed along unchanged and in whole, with credit to you.
CC BY-NC-ND
Attribution (BY) NonCommercial (NC) NoDerivatives (ND) – This licence is the most restrictive of the six main Creative Commons licences, allowing redistribution. This licence is often called the “free advertising” licence because it allows others to download and share your work with others as long as they credit you, but they must be passed along unchanged and in whole or use them commercially. It is a nonprofit licence.
Adapting Works With Different Licenses
The following video provides information on combining different Creative Commons licenses while creating or adapting OER.
Creating OER and Combining Licenses
Adapted from BCcampus under a CC-BY licenses.
