Is it okay to use images or other material from the internet for educational purposes?
Answer
It depends on what you want to do. Materials on the internet are treated the same under copyright law as any other copyright materials, so if you want to use them, you have to either fall within one of the Act’s exceptions (such as fair dealing) or have permission from the copyright owner. There is also a new exception in the act (Section 30.04) that will allow you to copy, play in class, or distribute to students, materials that you have found on the Internet, as long as:
- the material was posted legitimately (i.e. by the or with the consent of the Copyright owner).
- there is no clearly visible notice prohibiting educational use of the content.
- there is no technological protection measure preventing access to the material or preventing copying of the material (e.g. a presentation on a website like Prezi, a video on YouTube).
- you have acknowledged the author & website.
You should check the website’s ‘Terms of Use’, or ‘Legal Notices’ section to confirm what conditions apply to use of the website’s material. Many websites will allow non-commercial educational use of their materials.
With regards to pictures However it may be easier to simply check Britannica Image Quest (found in the Articles & Databases “B” on the Library website) a comprehensive image database available through the Library website. Students, faculty and staff can use Britannica Image Quest to support their assignments, reports, projects and presentations.
