Copyright at AST | Atlantic School of Theology

Copyright & Fair Dealing at AST

Effective August 2020, the Atlantic School of Theology has renewed its licence with Access Copyright.

Access Premium Licence- FAQs for students and staff

Print and Digital Copying Guidelines

The following tools must be used to check if copying is allowed under our Access Copyright Licence:

Access Copyright Repertoire Look-up Tool

Faculty, need to copy more than 20% of a published work in Access Copyright’s Repertoire?

Contact Access Copyright Permission Services

Atlantic School of Theology Copyright Guide

This guide does not provide legal advice. The information contained in this guide is intended to serve as a guideline.

What is acceptable use of copyright protected materials?

Make a copy from a copyrighted work (e.g. journal article or chapter from a book) for personal research or private study according to Fair Dealing
Make printouts or photocopies from a copyrighted work for distribution to an entire class without seeking permission of copyright holder. (See 2012 SCC Case Ruling and Fair Dealing for Educational Institutions
Post a stable or persistent link to a copyrighted work on Blackboard, Brightspace, or other secure CMS or LMS for students access. (Learn how to create stable/persistent links)
Place a copy from a copyrighted work (e.g. journal article or chapter from a book) on library reserve for a class according to Fair Dealing and our Access Copyright Licence
Print and copy an array of copyrighted works included in the Access Copyright Repertoire and assemble them into a coursepack for sale to students
Show a film in class for which public performance rights have been acquired
Stream a YouTube video in class

What is unacceptable use of copyright protected materials?

Download a PDF of a copyright protected work and upload it into Blackboard for students access without checking the licensing information and the Access Copyright Repertoire
Copy an array of copyrighted works, assemble them into a coursepack, and sell them to students without obtaining clearance from copyright holders
Make a copy of an entire copyright protected work, such as a play or novel, that was published as a volume on its own
Download a copyright protected video from the internet and distribute the file to students without obtaining clearance from copyright holders
Make a copy of an entire textbook

Copyright FAQs

What is copyright and what does it do?
The Copyright Act defines copyright as: “the sole right to produce or reproduce the work or any substantial part thereof in any materials form whatever, to perform the work or any substantial part thereof in public or, if the work is unpublished, to publish the work or any substantial part thereof” (Copyright Act, Section 3). Copyright is governed by the Copyright Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-42) in Canada and regulates the use and reproduction of creative and intellectual material.

How do I know if a work is protected by copyright?
The Copyright Act advises that copyright exists in “every original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic work” (see Section 5 for more information).

What laws and policies govern the use of copyrighted material at the Atlantic School of Theology?
Use of copyrighted material must comply with Canada’s Copyright Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-42) and its Fair Dealing policies.

What is fair dealing and what rights does it give me?
The Canadian Copyright Act defines Fair Dealing as the rights of an individual to use material with attribution for the purpose of research, private study, criticism, review or news reporting. Section 29 of the Copyright Act specifies that “Fair dealing for the purpose of research or private study does not infringe copyright.”

Does AST have any licences that add to my copying rights?
Effective August 2020, AST has a new licence with Access Copyright. The Access Premium Licence with Access Copyright covers paper and digital copying of published works in Access Copyright’s Repertoire. Refer to the Access Copyright website for more information about our Access Premium Licence.

Are there new publishing models that allow more open use of materials?
Yes. Consider using Open Access resources or materials with a Creative Commons License in your courses.

Access Copyright

Effective August 2020, the Atlantic School of Theology has renewed its licence with Access Copyright.

Access Premium Licence- FAQs for students and staff

Print and Digital Copying Guidelines

The following tools must be used to check if copying is allowed under our Access Copyright Licence:

Access Copyright Repertoire Look-up Tool

Need to copy more than 20% of a published work in Access Copyright’s Repertoire?

Contact Access Copyright Permission Services

Fair Dealing

Fair Dealing- Canadian Copyright Act (Section 29)

Educational Exceptions- Canadian Copyright Act (Section 29.4)

Atlantic School of Theology Fair Dealing Policy (May 2013)

Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) Guidelines for the Use of Copyrighted Material

Read University of Ottawa law professor Michael Geist's post on Assessing Fair Dealing for Education

Works in the Public Domain

The Public Domain includes all works not covered by copyright. Works enter the public domain when copyright expires or the creator of the work chooses to put the work in the public domain, such as publishing works with a Creative Commons license or in Open Access. Copyright lasts for the life of the author, the remainder of the calendar year in which the author dies, and for 50 years following the end of the calendar year.

Although permission is not needed to copy or modify works in the Public Domain, you should always properly cite and source these works. Rules about plagiarism and academic integrity do not have an expiration date.

Screening Films and Videos

An exception in the Copyright Act (Section 29.5) allows a screening of a video, film, or DVD on campus for educational or training purposes. Three conditions must be met in order for this exception to apply:

The performance must be done on the premises of an educational institution
The audience must consist primarily of students
The copy must be legally acquired

Before screening videos, films, or DVDs for a public performance (that does not meet all of the conditions listed above), always ensure that permission has been obtained to show them in public. Commercially purchased or rented videos, films, or DVDs are intended for personal use only and do not include public performance rights, unless otherwise specified. Where possible, the library purchases public performance rights (PPR) and DVDs in the collection are marked to indicate when PPR are included.

Videos available online are usually not for public performance, unless otherwise specified or permission is obtained from the copyright holder.

Copies of videos, films, or DVDs may not be made unless permission is obtained from the copyright owner.

YouTube in the Classroom

You may show a YouTube video in class if it is made available legitimately (e.g. uploaded by the copyright owner) and doesn't indicate that it is for personal use only or it cannot be used for public performance.

Watch this excellent video tutorial from Seneca Libraries (Seneca College) about using YouTube videos in the classroom.

YouTube.com/learning provides access to educational material that is cleared for educational use.

Seeking Permissions (Outside of our Access Copyright Licence)

When the nature or the extent of copying that you wish to do falls outside of Fair Dealing or the the terms of our Access Licence, you must obtain permission from the copyright holder and maintain records of those permissions. Otherwise, you may be held personally liable and subject to the civil and criminal remedies outlined in Part IV of the Copyright Act.

The first step in obtaining permission is to determine who holds copyright on the work. Check the item for this information:

verso (flip side) of the title page
slip case of a video, sound recording, or boxed set
credits statement (beginning or end of a video)
rights statement on a web page
accompanying contract or licence

If you are unable to determine who holds the copyright, contact the rights agency for the materials or the publisher to request the information.

Once you have established who holds copyright, you should either fill out a copyright permissions request form on the publisher website or write a letter to the copyright owner or publisher requesting permission to use the material. Your letter should include the following information:

your name
name of the institution
intended use of the material
intended audience for distribution/performance (e.g., educational, not for profit, intranet users with controlled access)
intended duration of distribution/performance (e.g., one academic term only, number of times it will be used)
intended medium of reproduction (e.g., paper, video, broadcast, electronic)
title of work
author/editor/creator of the work
date of publication/production
time or origin of broadcast
ISBN, ISSN, catalogue number, program number, or other unique identifier
chapters, pages, or section to be copied
number of copies to be made
provision for payment of royalty fees if any are due

If you receive permission to copy the material keep a copy of the letter, fax or form granting permission for your records.

Legislation

Bill C-11: An Act to Amend the Copyright Act

Watch CAUT's response to Canadian Copyright Modernization Legislation

Contact for Assistance

Copyright Officer

Rev. Dr. Susan MacAlpine-Gillis
Academic Dean

susan.macalpine-gillis@astheology.ns.ca

Copyright Coordinator

Christine LeBlanc
Library Co-Chair, Collections Promotion & Development Librarian

christine.leblanc@astheology.ns.ca