Through the Canadian Teachers’ Federation and the Copyright Consortium we have been seeking improvements to our copyright laws for 10 years.
This ruling now brings in line rules for teachers in Canada with those of teachers in most other countries. Teachers can now reasonably use internet and print resources for learning in their classroom.
Today’s ruling by the Supreme Court is a big win for students by supporting the professional work of teachers.
It will take time to analyze the full implications, but this ruling should provide greater flexibility for teachers in their use of copyright materials in the classroom.
Teachers do a great deal of research when planning for instruction. They gather information from a variety of sources; this ruling will ensure that teachers can share reasonable amounts of copyright information with students.
Providing this broadened definition of “fair dealing” will save school boards desperately needed funds that they can direct towards supporting learning.
The win today fits well with the proclamation of bill C-11 which helps ensure that digital information is encompassed by rules of fair dealing.
Two issues are still outstanding:
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