Week+4+Discussion+5306

The quote I chose from this week's readings if from "Evidence of the NETS*S in K-12 Classrooms: Implication for Teacher Education" which stated "Teacher education programs can help alleviate this problem by ensuring pre-service teachers have a good understanding of intellectual property principles and copyright laws, and have the knowledge and skills to effectively cite sources. More importantly, perhaps, teacher education programs should commit to helping pre-service teachers develop a sense of social and ethical responsibility to instill appropriate values in their future students" (p 493).

I agree with the statement the future teachers still in school need to be educated about copyright laws and ethics. Teachers who are expected to integrate technology into their classrooms most definitely need to know the laws. After reading many of the articles this week, I realized that I knew very little about copyright laws. Was I supposed to learn this in college? Because I certainly was not required to take a course on it. Now, with the onset of so many internet resources at our fingertips, I would think it even more imperative to educate future teachers on this topic. But what about teachers who have already gone to school and are now beginning to integrate technology into their classrooms? I can assure you that no time in my 13 years teaching have I ever attended a training on copyright laws or even heard it mentioned in a faculty meeting. If this is such a "big deal" (and I believe it is), then why aren't current as well as future teachers being educated about it? I am sure I would still be in the dark had I not taken this course. We need to know the laws so that we may teach our students what to do and what not to do.

Neiderhauser, Lindstrom, and Strobel (2007). Evidence of the NETS*S in K-12 Classrooms: Implication for Teacher Education, 493.