Day 10 - Intellectual Property

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Day 10: Intellectual Property

Learning Objectives

IOC-1.I: Explain how the use of computing can raise legal and ethical concerns.

Essential Questions

What is intellectual property and how does it apply to computing?
How do copyright, patents, and licenses affect the use and creation of digital content?
What are the trade-offs between intellectual property protection and open access?

Materials Needed

Presentation slides on intellectual property concepts
Intellectual property case study handouts
License comparison chart
Digital content usage guide template
Exit ticket templates

Vocabulary

Intellectual property
Copyright
Patent
Trademark
License
Fair use
Open source
Creative Commons
Public domain
Digital rights management (DRM)

Procedure (50 minutes)

Opening (8 minutes)

Review and Connection (3 minutes)
- Review ethical concerns from previous lesson
- Connect to today's focus on intellectual property in computing
Warm-up Activity (5 minutes)
- Display several digital artifacts (image, code snippet, music file, app interface)
- Ask students: "Who owns this? What can you legally do with it?"
- Discuss initial responses
- Introduce intellectual property as a framework for answering these questions

Main Activities (32 minutes)

Lecture: Intellectual Property Concepts (12 minutes)
- Define intellectual property as creations of the mind that have legal protections
- Explain different types of intellectual property protection:
  - Copyright: Creative works (text, images, music, software)
  - Patents: Inventions and processes
  - Trademarks: Brands, logos, and identifiers
  - Trade secrets: Confidential business information
- Focus on copyright as most relevant to digital content:
  - What copyright protects
  - Duration of protection
  - Rights granted to creators
  - Fair use exceptions
  - International aspects
- Explain how intellectual property applies to computing:
  - Software copyright and patents
  - Digital media rights
  - User-generated content
  - Algorithms and methods
- Discuss licensing as a way to grant permissions:
  - Proprietary licenses
  - Open source licenses
  - Creative Commons licenses
  - Public domain
Exploration: Copyright, Patents, Trademarks, and Licenses (10 minutes)
- Divide class into four groups
- Assign each group one aspect of intellectual property:
  - Group 1: Copyright in software and digital media
  - Group 2: Patents in computing
  - Group 3: Trademarks in technology
  - Group 4: Software licensing models
- Groups research their assigned topic and prepare a brief presentation
- Each group presents key points about their topic
- Create a class reference chart of intellectual property types
Case Studies: Intellectual Property Disputes in Technology (10 minutes)
- Present 2-3 case studies of intellectual property disputes in technology:
  - Software patent litigation
  - Open source license violation
  - Digital media copyright infringement
  - API copyright case
- For each case, analyze:
  - What was the intellectual property issue?
  - Who were the parties involved?
  - What was the outcome?
  - What precedent did it set?
  - What broader implications resulted?
- Connect cases to relevant intellectual property principles
- Discuss how these cases have shaped computing practices

Closing (10 minutes)

Discussion: Open Source vs. Proprietary Software (5 minutes)
- Compare open source and proprietary software models:
  - Development approach
  - Business models
  - User rights and restrictions
  - Community involvement
  - Innovation patterns
- Discuss the trade-offs between intellectual property protection and openness
- Explore how different models serve different purposes
- Consider the role of open source in modern software development
Exit Ticket: Digital Intellectual Property Guide (5 minutes)
- Students begin creating a guide for proper use of digital intellectual property
- Guide should include:
  - How to identify copyrighted content
  - How to determine what uses are permitted
  - How to properly attribute sources
  - How to find and use open-licensed content
  - How to protect one's own intellectual property
- Students will complete the guide as homework
- Collect initial drafts before students leave

Assessment

Formative: Quality of participation in intellectual property exploration and case studies
Exit Ticket: Accuracy and completeness of digital intellectual property guide

Differentiation

For Advanced Students

Ask them to analyze more complex intellectual property cases
Have them compare intellectual property laws across different countries
Challenge them to develop an intellectual property strategy for a software project

For Struggling Students

Focus on more basic intellectual property concepts
Provide a structured template for the intellectual property guide
Use more concrete examples and visual aids

Homework/Extension

Complete the digital intellectual property guide
Research an intellectual property dispute in technology
Analyze the license terms of a familiar software application

Teacher Notes

Clarify that you're not providing legal advice, just educational information
Use current examples that students will recognize
Make connections to students' experiences as content creators and users
Consider inviting a legal professional with IP expertise as a guest speaker
This concludes Week 2 of the unit