Bryan M. Carson

A Universal Design Infrastructure for Multimodal Presentation of Materials in STEM Programs: Universal Design

We describe a proposed universal design infrastructure that aims at promoting better opportunities for students with disabilities in STEM programs to understand multimedia teaching material. The Accessible Educational STEM Videos Project aims to transform learning and teaching for students with disabilities through integrating synchronized captioned educational videos into undergraduate and graduate STEM disciplines. This Universal Video Captioning (UVC) platform will serve as a repository for uploading videos and scripts. The proposed infrastructure is a web-based platform that uses the latest WebDAV technology (Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning) to identify resources, users, and content. It consists of three layers: (i) an administrative management system; (ii) a faculty/staff user interface; and (iii) a transcriber user interface. We anticipate that by enriching it with captions or transcripts, the multimodal presentation of materials promises to help students with disabilities in STEM programs master the subject better and increase retention.

Moving from entrenched structure to a universal design

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act [1] requires electronic and information technology communications to be in made available in an accessible format by alternative means perceptible by people with disabilities. These provisions apply to all entities-including colleges and universities-that receive Federal money (17 U.S.C. § 794). The Accessible Educational STEM Videos Project aims to transform learning and teaching for students with disabilities through integrating synchronized captioned educational videos into undergraduate and graduate STEM disciplines. This Universal Video Captioning (UVC) platform will serve as a repository for uploading videos and scripts. The proposed infrastructure is a web-based platform that uses the lasted WebDAV technology (Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning) to identify resources, users, contents, etc. It consists of three layers: i) an administrative management system; ii) a faculty/staff user interface; and iii) a transcriber user interface.

Legally Speaking -- John Doe and the PATRIOT Act

There have been two cases where the NSL provisions of the PATRIOT Act have been challenged. Technically, both cases involved the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which is the statute that deals with National Security Letters. However, in both cases the courts were dealing with that portion of FISA which had been amended by section 215 of the PATRIOT Act. One case, Doe v. Ashcroft (“Doe I”), was from New York, and involved an Internet service provider. The second case, Doe v. Gonzales (“Doe II”), was from Connecticut and involved a library. In both cases, the district courts found the challenged provisions of FISA and the PATRIOT Act to be unconstitutional. The two cases were consolidated for the purposes of appeal to the 2nd Circuit. This column will discuss the now-declassified history of the Connecticut case (John Doe II), along with the consolidated ruling of the court of appeals.

Library Research Skills and the Nursing Curriculum: Engaging Students in the Post-Brandon-Hill Era

ABSTRACT Health science librarians experience challenges when partnering with people from other professional backgrounds such as nursing and with people of different ages. In partnering with people of other backgrounds, it is helpful to recognize the changing nature of research skills and the fact that many 21st century college students lack a print-based concept of research. Helping students to succeed in understanding and participating in the research process is more important than ever due to changes in the nursing profession, the sheer mass of scholarly information, and the challenges of searching for information on the world wide web.

The Importance of Intellectual Property Licensing in 21st Century Libraries

by Bryan M. Carson, J.D., M.I.L.S. (Associate Professor/Coordinator of Reference & Instructional Services, Western Kentucky University Libraries, Author, “The Law of Libraries and Archives” (Scarecrow Press), Ed.D Student, Higher Ed. Leadership & Policy, Vanderbilt University, 1906 College Heights Blvd. #11067, Bowling Green, Kentucky 42101-1067; Phone: 270-745-5007; Fax: 270-745-2275) <bryan.carson@wku.edu>

Legally Speaking — Drama in the Library: Always Seek Permission to Publicly Peform Scripts, Even When the Library Owns Them

Agnes is the theater director at East Bumkis University. She wants to perform the play “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller. She has not yet decided whether to charge admission to the play. Agnes calls George, the drama librarian, and asks him to make ten copies of the script for the cast and crew. What should George advise Agnes? Librarians are often asked to help provide scripts or music to other departments on campus. They are also asked for guidance. Often librarians are the best copyright experts on their college campuses, so it is important for us to know how the copyright law affects scripts and music, and what to say when we are asked for advice. The scenario above indicates two types of rights that are exclusively reserved for the copyright holder, namely the right of reproduction and the right of public performance. Section 106 of the Copyright Act provides the following rights for copyright owners (subject to exceptions such as Fair Use, education, and library use): (1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; (2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; (3) to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; (4) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works, to perform the copyrighted work publicly; (5) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, to display the copyrighted work publicly; and (6) in the case of sound recordings, to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission. There is an exception for libraries to make copies listed in § 108 of the Copyright Act. However, this exception only releases libraries and library workers from liability under certain circumstances. (For more information on the library exceptions, please see chapter 5, “Copyright and Education,” of my book The Law of Libraries and Archives or my “Legally Speaking” column from April 2000, “What is Intellectual Property.”) The library exception in § 108 allows library clients or library workers to make or distribute one (and only one) copy of a work. The reproduction must be made for a non-commercial purpose such as research, learning, etc. In addition, the copy must include any notice of copyright that appears on the original. If there is no notice of copyright on the original, the reproduction must include a legend stating that the work may be protected by copyright. In our scenario, the library would be prohibited from making multiple copies of a script for use by the whole cast. This would fall outside of the library exception and would constitute a violation of the right of reproduction, since the library may only make (or allow to be made) one copy of the script. The librarian should explain to the faculty member why she can’t make multiple copies. The library would also be subject to liability if the worker had actual knowledge that the client intended to use the material in an infringing fashion or for commercial gain. If there is actual knowledge on the part of library workers, the library exception in § 108 does not apply, and the library would be liable for violation of copyright. Suppose that George only made one copy, but he knew that Agnes was planning to make more copies for the cast. George’s actual knowledge that Agnes was planning to infringe copyright law would subject him and the library to liability along with Agnes for violating the right of reproduction. Another requirement for the § 108 copyright exception is that the use of the item be noncommercial. Because Agnes was considering charging admission, her use would in fact be commercial. Therefore, if George knew that Agnes was considering charging admission, he would not be able to claim the protection of § 108. As a result, George should advise Agnes not to make a photocopy of the script. The second right of the author that would be violated is the right of public performance. The copyright holder can control who performs his or her material publicly, and has the right to charge licensing fees. It does not matter whether or not the person who puts on the performance charges admission; either way, the public performance rights still need to be obtained. Therefore Agnes must obtain permission in order to publicly perform the play. The fee for the license will probably be higher if she charges admission than if she doesn’t. Similar public performance rights also apply to films. If you show the film for noneducational use, you must obtain permission. Similarly, both recorded music and musical scores require permission in order to be performed publicly. There is a limited educational exception in § 110 of the copyright act; for more information, see my “Legally Speaking” column in the November 2003 issue of Against the Grain. However, this exception does not apply if the performance is open to the public. Many small schools, community orchestras, and community theater groups mistakenly assume that no one will know if they put on a play without asking for permission. What they don’t realize is that the agencies that handle performance rights employ people whose job is to go through the local newspapers of every city in the United States and see if someone is putting on a play, concert, etc. In the old days, groups such as ASCAP, SESAC, and Samuel French subscribed to every newspaper in the U.S. Their research has become even easier with the introduction of online databases, Web searching, and blogs. It is pretty hard to hide Legally Speaking — Drama in the Library: Always Seek Permission to Publicly Perform Scripts, Even when the Library Owns Them