Copyright v. Teachers

In considering the many weighty legal issues with which teachers must contend, I'll admit I'm at something of a loss. I had never realized the many different ways that one could violate laws invovling intellectual properity. It seems to me, that I have never had a teacher who did not violate these rules in some way. I realize that not all these violation would necessarily result in the teacher's dismissal or a law suit for the school. Yet, I also wonder if the problem has gotten so large, especially with the Internet, that the various companies and publisher who produce material to suport teachers are actually in financial jeopardy. I certainly would want to be as informed as possible, not only for my own leagal protection, but because I feel teachers have a moral obligation to serve as model citizens for their students. I believe I should do everything possible to incorporate my students into the information age. I fear that in pursuing that goal and opening up as many resources to my students as possible I am bound to run afoul of some copywrite issue. The articles we read noted that only a trained expert could really contend with all the complexities of intellectual properity laws, and I worry what might happen if I don't have such aresource available. I also feel that I will never be as informed as I should be because I am more likely to focus on complying with those laws that are meant to protect the children. I will be mindful of laws like CIPA, because as much as I value protecting copywrite, I'm goint to focus more on protecting my students from possible threats. I guess the best you can do is to stay as informed as possible, do your job, and plead ignorance in the case of any violations