TEACH Act
Frequently Asked Questions

A. Institutional Level Questions | B. Technological Questions | C. Faculty/Content Questions

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A. Institutional Level Questions

1. Does the institution's copyright policy need to specifically address TEACH?
2. How are institutions approaching the definition of “officially enrolled”?
3. Can you define “distance education”?
4. Is it appropriate to give access to course materials after the end of a course to students with an incomplete grade?
5. TEACH is described as applying to distance education. Is access by an enrolled student in their dorm room included in the definition of distance education?
6. Can students log on and view class sessions at their own pace?
7. In invoking the TEACH exemption, is it more a matter of the instructor being clear in his/her own mind that the material being used is actually falling under the TEACH guidelines or is there further paperwork/notification that needs to be done?
8. The House report indicates that faculty and students can post materials pursuant to TEACH. What about instructional technology support staff working for the faculty but not enrolled in the class?

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A. 1. Does the institution's copyright policy need to specifically address TEACH?

No. The TEACH Act policy mandate is as follows:

The transmitting institution must institute policies regarding copyright and provide informational materials to faculty, students, and relevant staff members that accurately describe, and promote compliance with, the laws of the United States relating to copyright.

Thus, the TEACH Act itself does not require an institution's copyright policy to specifically address TEACH and, in fact, the TEACH Act is really just the new section 110(2) of the Copyright Act. Most institutional policies already require compliance with the law, if not the copyright law specifically.

It is also important to keep in mind that the TEACH Act exemption (with its host of requirements) is not the only way that copyrighted materials can be lawfully transmitted (online or otherwise). Materials can also be posted with the permission of the copyright holder (and remember that the faculty member is often the copyright holder) or pursuant to fair use.

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2. How are institutions approaching the definition of “officially enrolled”?

There is no definition of “officially enrolled” in the TEACH Act statutory language or the legislative reports. Each institution will have to determine its own definition of this term. “Officially enrolled” can mean that the student is listed on the official class roll maintained by the institution's department of registration and records and actively complying with all course requirements. Additionally, for TEACH Act purposes, it can include other institutionally offered courses, such as online library instruction, training, and continuing education courses where the enrollment list is maintained in a department other than university registration and records.

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3. Can you define “distance education”?

There are no doubt many definitions of distance education crafted for many different purposes. The TEACH Act, though often associated with distance education activities, is not limited to “distance education” and does not even use the phrase in its text. The TEACH Act modifies section 110(2) of the copyright act which pertains to transmissions of performances and displays of copyrighted works. To transmit a performance or display is to communicate it by any device or process whereby images or sounds are received beyond the place from which they are sent. Therefore, any time the performance or display of a copyrighted work is transmitted, TEACH is potentially implicated. This would include “distance education courses”, “traditional” courses with an online component, cable TV courses, and so forth.

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4. Is it appropriate to give access to course materials after the end of a course to students with an incomplete grade?

Although the TEACH Act does not specifically address this situation, the legislative history indicates an expectation that a common sense approach will be applied in implementing TEACH. Allowing access to course materials after the end of a course to a student with an incomplete grade, assuming all the other TEACH requirements are met, would not seem to violate this expectation because that student is still taking the course. Access to materials that are not posted pursuant to TEACH would always be acceptable. Access to TEACH materials would be acceptable if they fall within a “class session” that is still ongoing with respect to that student.

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5. TEACH is described as applying to distance education. Is access by an enrolled student in their dorm room included in the definition of distance education?

Yes, that access would qualify as a transmission that could use the TEACH exemption. See response to Question No. A. 3, supra. Furthermore, TEACH was specifically designed to eliminate the previous requirement of section 110(2) that the student receiving the transmission be located in a classroom or similar place normally devoted to instruction. Therefore, where the enrolled student is physically located is not important.

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6. Can students log on and view class sessions at their own pace?

Yes. A class session is generally that period during which a student is logged on to the server of the institution making the display or performance. It is likely to vary with the needs of the student and with the design of the particular course. See also, Question C.4, infra.

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7. In invoking the TEACH exemption, is it more a matter of the instructor being clear in his/her own mind that the material being used is actually falling under the TEACH guidelines or is there further paperwork/notification that needs to be done?

Both. All the items in the TEACH checklist must be satisfied. Some can be done by the faculty member; others should be or need to be implemented at an institutional level. See the TEACH Basic Checklist at http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scc/legislative/teachkit/index.html

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Other TEACH Act Checklists:

• The TEACH Act Finally Becomes Law

http://www.utsystem.edu/ogc/intellectualproperty/teachact.htm

• IUPUI's Checklist for Compliance with the TEACH Act

http://www.copyright.iupui.edu/teachlist.htm

• University of Northern Iowa Teach Act Checklist

http://fp.uni.edu/teachact/checklist.htm

• CSUCI Checklist of Faculty of TEACH Act Responsibilities

http://www.csuci.edu/library/copyright/pdfs/checklist.pdf

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8. The House report indicates that faculty and students can post materials pursuant to TEACH. What about instructional technology support staff working for the faculty but not enrolled in the class?

That is OK, provided the faculty member approves it. TEACH requires that postings be under the actual supervision of the faculty member who is teaching the course, but this still allows others to post materials on behalf of the faculty member.

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A. Institutional Level Questions | B. Technological Questions | C. Faculty/Content Questions