Guidelines for copyright and e-learning
For the use of copyrighted material in RWTHmoodle course rooms, some basic rules apply, which we have compiled together with the Department 9 (Law) of the Central University Administration of RWTH Aachen University.
Contents
1. Policy
2. Exceptions according to sec. 60 a and c
Generally, content creators must consent to third-party usage of their material. However, German copyright law (UrhG) states some very specific exceptions to this required consent. Our pamphlet “Copyright – create teaching material and make it available to the public" gives a brief outline of these exceptions. Sec. 60 a and c are especially relevant for e-learning purposes.
2. Exceptions according to sec. 60 a and c
Sec. 60 a and c German Copyright Act regulate non-commercial fair use for purposes of education and science. This privilege does not require consent and thus it is vital to respect the necessary qualifications in order to protect the original author’s interests. Material protected under copyright may under no circumstances be passed out to an unmanageable number of persons.
This means that according to sec. 60a German Copyright Actprotected material may be distributed on e-learning platforms exclusively for individual use within the boundaries provided by the guidelines. It is imperative that access to the platform (e.g. Moodle) be restricted (e.g. password-protected).
2.1. Sec. 60 a German Copyright Act
Sec. 60 a para 1 Nr 1 German Copyright Act allows materials to be uploaded to an e-learning platform for use by teachers and students of that specific module. All material must be directly related to the course. Only participants of the course, i.e. one course, one lecture, one project group or one exam, may access the material. Thus, the material may only be made accessible to students either enrolled in the course or attending the respective lecture as it is intended to aid in preparatory as well as follow-up work and further immersion into the corresponding course’s content.
Course access must be terminated once the materials are not required for following up on the course.
According to sec. 60 a para. 1 No. 2 German Copyright Act, teachers and examiners within the same university may pass on materials to each other within the legal boundaries on protected platforms in order to facilitate course preparation. Teachers may use these materials according to No. 1 in their own course.
Please consult our pamphlet regarding sec. 60 a German Copyright Act to see to which extent you are allowed to use copyright-protected material.
2.2. Sec. 60 c German Copyright Act
Sec. 60 c German Copyright Act facilitates sharing material within a small research team. Researchers may thus provide scientific articles to each other. Here, too, it is imperative that access to the e-learning platform be restricted to the research team only. It is not required for researchers to be members of the same institution.
Please consult our pamphlet regarding sec. 60 c German Copyright Act to see to which extent you are allowed to use copyright-protected material.
Note
- Citation of sources is mandatory.
- Attention: Merely linking to material that is already publicly accessible online (e.g. without restricted access) does not infringe upon the author’s copyright and is thus permissible.
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