Distance Education
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Distance education is a planned teaching and learning activity that employs a wide spectrum of technologies to reach learners at remote locations. Instruction may be synchronous or asynchronous. Distance education may utilize correspondence study, or audiovisual and/or computer technologies.
The recently passed Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act (the TEACH Act), part of the larger H.R. 2215 (November 2, 2002) redefines the terms and conditions on which accredited, nonprofit educational institutions throughout the U.S. may use copyright protected materials in distance education-including on websites and by other digital means-without permission from the copyright owner without payment of royalties A paper by Kenneth Crewes summarizes the new standards and the requirements of the TEACH Act. Excerpts from this paper follow:
Works that are explicitly allowed:
- Performances of non-dramatic literary works;
- Performances of non-dramatic musical works
- Performances of any other work, including dramatic works and audiovisual works, but only in "reasonable and limited portions"
- Displays of any work "in an amount comparable to that which is typically displayed in the course of a live classroom session.