Learning

Unfair Use

The New York Times reports that the New York State Regents have exercised considerable discretion in selectively quoting works for the English exam. Their sin is one of omission, rather than commission like Stephen Ambrose's. This quote from Elie Wiesel's "What Really Makes Us Free" is provided for example.

Man, who was created in God's image, wants to be free as God is free: free to choose between good and evil, love and vengeance, life and death.

In their defense,

Roseanne DeFabio, the [New York State] Education Department's assistant commissioner for curriculum, instruction and assessment, said on Friday, "We do shorten the passages and alter the passages to make them suitable for testing situations." The changes are made to satisfy the sensitivity guidelines the department uses, so no student will be "uncomfortable in a testing situation," she said. "Even the most wonderful writers don't write literature for children to take on a test."

Ms. DeFabio said that as a result of an objection recently received from an author, the department had decided to use ellipses in future exams. She also said she thought it worthwhile that the department consider marking passages that were altered, but did not believe that it was necessary to ask authors' permission to change their work.
— "The Elderly Man and the Sea? Test Sanitizes Literary Texts", N. R. Kleinfield, The New York Times, June 2, 2002.

Aside from the idiocy of this practice, the Regents are mis-using the original work by not quoting properly. Do New York schools not teach proper attribution?

2:10:01 PM # Google It!
categories: Law, Learning