Introduction

“	Creativity always builds on the past. And you are building the past right now. Share now. Shape the future.	”
—Justin Cone, 2004

In this tutorial we reflect on the rationale for sharing in education and introduce the Creative Commons licenses.

Traditional "all rights reserved" copyright restricts our access to the creative outputs of the past. However, imagine a world where we stop reinventing the wheel and build on the past for a better future.

Imagine a world where:

• Learners can download prescribed textbooks for their courses at no cost.
• Educators can download lecture notes, lesson plans, e-learning courses and have the freedom to copy, modify, and translate these resources to suit their own unique teaching styles and local learning needs, with the added advantage of redistributing these materials without restriction.
• Educators and learners have free access to peer-reviewed research publications for integration, reuse and generation of new knowledge in local learning and research contexts.

This world is not a distant dream in the future. You can do this today with Creative Commons licenses. It's legal, and it's free.

Microblog activity

Activity: Imagine a world where ... Two videos and sharing your thoughts Watch Video 1, "Building on the Past" which introduces how we can use Creative Commons licenses to build on the past while shaping the future. Contribute to the discussion of the ideas in this video by posting one or two microblog entries sharing your thoughts. Post your thoughts on WEnotes, twitter or Google+ and include the hash tag "#OCL4Ed" in your post, for example, Great video because .... #OCL4Ed. Questions for consideration: What was the most important message of the video for you? Did you learn anything new? Watch Video 2, and meet Justin Cone who created "Building on the Past". Contribute your thoughts, ideas or insights to the discussion of Justin's ideas by posting one or two microblog entries. (Remember to include #OCL4Ed in your post.) Questions for consideration: Do you agree / disagree with Justin's reasons and message behind the video -- Why? Did you experience any unexpected insights? Please share. Complete this sentence: "For me, Creative Commons means ... "

Video 1: "Building on the Past" - Winner of the Creative Commons Moving Images Contest, 2004. A free content video streamed from Vimeo Justin Cone. Video 2: Going behind the scenes. Meet Creative Commoner, Justin Cone who created "Building on the Past". A free content video streamed from Vimeo Justin Cone.

Lawrence Lessig, a leading pioneer and founding board member of Creative Commons, suggests giving the creators of knowledge and culture the freedom to create. This means giving the permissions to create. In this tutorial we will explore how this works. It's legal, and it's free!