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Copyright for Staff: Introduction

General overview of copyright and attributing for staff

Your Copyright Responsibility & More

You and South Metropolitan TAFE may be liable for copyright infringement and face severe repercussions if you use materials for which you do not have the copyright owner's permission or the benefit of a licence or exception under the Copyright Act.   

For more information, see:  ‘Liability of schools, TAFEs institutes and individuals for copyright infringement’.  

Ensure you are familiar with South Metropolitan TAFE's Copyright Policy [Staff access only]
Check out the SMT Copyright Permissions request template - to help with seeking third-party permissions [Staff access only]
Check out the SMT Copyright Register template - to help with keeping track of third-party permission requests [Staff access only]
Check out our copyright queries FAQ which we hope will help you.  We will continue to add content here.  

About this Guide

This guide provides SM TAFE staff with information on how to comply with copyright requirements when developing your teaching and learning materials, whether it is in print or online.

  • It is not intended as legal advice, nor is it intended to provide advice on the creation of commercial materials. 
  • Its focus is on correct licencing use and use of attributions when using third-party content in an educational environment. 

If you need further assistance, please contact the Library

Image Source: geralt. (2015, July 14). [Copyright symbol icon]. from Pixabay

The Copyright Advisor Can Help!

An easy-to-use copyright tool adapted for Western Australian TAFE staff to help make sense of copyright. 

Complying with Attribution Requirements

Complying with copyright attribution can be easy -

just follow three steps.     

STEP 1.   Decide which licence or authorisation is needed
  • Use our flow chart to help you decide.  
  • Be sure to comply with any relevant licence restrictions.  
STEP 2.   Create your attribution
  • Combine your licence information with your item information.
  • Use the APA referencing style for your item information.
  • See our attribution examples for the correct format.
STEP 3.   Attach the attribution
  • You need to provide the attribution at the point where you use the copyright information, for print and online resources, or at least a reference list indicating where the information has been used.

Disclaimer and Acknowledgement

The information in this guide is for your guidance only.  It does not constitute legal advice.

We thank Central Regional TAFE for allowing their guide content to be adapted for use in this guide.