Hello All,

can you provide a brief description of what your board is doing with regards to copyright issues and scanning materials for kurzweil users in your board (considering practicality and efficiency)... you may want to send me a private note instead of answering to all....

nvanwoudenberg@smcdsb.on.ca

Right now our schools are doing their own scanning. We have no centralized system of accessing scanned material. But, I too am interested in hearing what other boards have.
Our goals for next year re: access:
1. high speed colour scanner available at board office
2. provide info to schools re: publisher ie. Thomsom Learning, that provide etext for textbooks etc...
3. provide a system of sharing resources. We may put scanned texts on a memory stick and have it available through our central library
4. All schools have scanner for Kurzweil purposes at the schools.

Hi,

Our Spec. Ed. department has purchased high-speed scanners and wish to scan entire textbooks to be used with Kurzweil or other software for special needs students. This would not be covered by the Access Copyright (CanCopy) agreement that allows photocopying in two ways: both the scope (more than 10% or one chapter), and the agreement does not allow for conversion to digital format except to produce another paper copy. Our staff member who looks after the agreement has received email explicitly denying the right to scan unless a separate agreement covers such action.

However, the copyright act does have an exception for persons with "perceptual disabilities" which might apply. The relevant sections are:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Persons with Perceptual Disabilities

Reproduction in alternate format

32. (1) It is not an infringement of copyright for a person, at the request of a person with a perceptual disability, or for a non-profit organization acting for his or her benefit, to

(a) make a copy or sound recording of a literary, musical, artistic or dramatic work, other than a cinematographic work, in a format specially designed for persons with a perceptual disability;

(b) translate, adapt or reproduce in sign language a literary or dramatic work, other than a cinematographic work, in a format specially designed for persons with a perceptual disability; or

(c) perform in public a literary or dramatic work, other than a cinematographic work, in sign language, either live or in a format specially designed for persons with a perceptual disability.

Limitation
(2) Subsection (1) does not authorize the making of a large print book.

Limitation
(3) Subsection (1) does not apply where the work or sound recording is commercially available in a format specially designed to meet the needs of any person referred to in that subsection, within the meaning of paragraph (a) of the definition “commercially available”.

R.S., 1985, c. C-42, s. 32; R.S., 1985, c. 10 (4th Supp.), s. 7; 1997, c. 24, s. 19.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
where the definition of perpetual disability is:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"perceptual disability" means a disability that prevents or inhibits a person from reading or hearing a literary, musical, dramatic or artistic work in its original format, and includes such a disability resulting from

(a) severe or total impairment of sight or hearing or the inability to focus or move one’s eyes,

(b) the inability to hold or manipulate a book, or

(c) an impairment relating to comprehension;

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, two questions:
- what is your Board's policy with respect to scanning textbooks for special needs students (or indeed other purposes)?
- if allowed, do you have a legal opinion or other authority to which I can refer?

Thanks.

Hello Duncan,

I understood that the Canada Copyright covers the creation alternate text for the print disabled. CanCopy does not specify this. W Ross MacDonald Library produces its materials under the Canada Copyright agreement. The 3 qualifiers are:
1. you must own a hard copy of the book (ideally the student has it physically beside him/her or it's taken out of circulation)
2. the alternate text is for a print-disabled student (i.e. vision, physical or learning disabilities)
3. you don't make copies of the alternate text (unless you have another hard copy of the text, and another print disabled student to match)

You could check with the W Ross MacDonald Library in Brantford as they would know more.

Good luck,
Jeryl Phillips, Peel District School Board