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Lecture Recording Procedures

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Section 1 - Purpose

(1) These Procedures support provisions relating to the recording of lectures as outlined in Section 5 of the Subject Delivery Policy.

(2) These Procedures should be read in conjunction with the Subject Delivery Policy.

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Section 2 - Application and Scope

(3) These Procedures apply to the delivery of all undergraduate and postgraduate coursework subjects at the University of Wollongong that are taught onshore and offshore.

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Section 3 - Subject Delivery Principles

(4) The University of Wollongong supports the recording of lectures as standard practice in venues that are equipped for recording. The recording of lectures, and where appropriate, other learning experiences, is endorsed as a technology-enriched learning strategy which provides students with equity of access and can enhance the student experience.

(5) The University of Wollongong recognises that the recording of learning experiences can assist students who:

  1. have a disability requiring accommodation;
  2. are located at another campus;
  3. need to review lectures at their own pace to enhance their learning;
  4. miss lectures due to illness, or other pressing circumstances;
  5. are undertaking revision in weeks prior to substantive assessment tasks or written exams; or
  6. have unresolvable timetable conflicts.

(6) Recorded learning experiences are offered as a supplemental study tool that is not intended to replace class attendance or participation in learning experiences and opportunities.

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Section 4 - Learning Experiences to be Recorded

(7) A learning experience that is a lecture must be recorded if timetabled in a venue that is equipped for recording.

(8) Other learning experiences may also be recorded if the Subject Coordinator deems the experience to be suitable for recording. A preference to record a learning experience should be indicated when the timetable for each academic session is being developed.

(9) The contact hours for the learning experiences within each subject are described in the learning and teaching activities section of COSMOS. The contact hours information is managed by Faculties and Schools and:

  1. is published in the University’s Subject Database;
  2. is used in the determination of the subject timetable for each academic session; and
  3. informs students of the requirements of the subject before the academic session commences.

(10) Academic Units are responsible for submitting subject information and other requirements for learning experiences in accordance with the University’s Timetabling Policy. This includes the delivery structure and contact hours for each subject.

(11) For the purpose of timetabling learning experiences, any description that is split - such as a Lecture/Tutorial - will indicate that one learning experience will follow another, but within the same venue. In this case, the arrangement and duration of each learning experience must be specified and only the lecture component is required to be recorded.

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Section 5 - Non-Recording of Lectures

Before the Release of Subject Outlines

(12) When preparing for subject delivery Subject Coordinators may apply to not record a lecture, or lectures, in a subject on the basis there is a compelling reason not to do so. Compelling reasons for not recording a lecture(s) include:

  1. cultural sensitivities;
  2. non-consent from a guest lecturer;
  3. the nature of the material to be presented or discussed; 
  4. the learning experience involves highly interactive delivery or is unsuitable for recording; and
  5. where privacy concerns pose a risk to a staff member.

(13) A perceived impact on class attendance levels alone is not considered to be a compelling reason for not recording lectures.

(14) Subject Coordinators must identify any lectures that will not be recorded, and submit the compelling reason for this decision to the Head of School for approval prior to adding to the draft subject outline.

(15) The Head of School will approve or decline an application not to record a lecture(s), and notify the relevant contacts within the existing School and/or Faculty subject outline quality assurance and approval process.

(16) An approved compelling reason for not recording a lecture/s will be communicated to students, as a minimum expectation, in the subject outline and must include information on the alternative resources available to students for study revision purposes. 

After the release of Subject Outlines

(17) From time to time, after the Subject Outline has been released, a Subject Coordinator may recommend that:

  1. a lecture is unsuitable to be recorded in accordance with clause 12; or
  2. a recording should be edited, not published, or removed/made unavailable.

(18) A Subject Coordinator may also respond to a request to edit; not publish; or remove a published recording with regard to Section 8 Privacy Considerations or section 9 Copyright Considerations.

(19) Any changes to the availability of recorded lectures after the release of subject outlines, must be communicated to students in writing by means such as the subject e-learning site or via email, and with regard to the process for extraordinary amendments to the Subject Outline as set out in the Subject Delivery Policy.

(20) In the following circumstances alternative educational resources (including but not limited to another recording) should be offered to enrolled students:

  1. where a lecture was not recorded but should have been recorded in accordance with the requirements of these Procedures; or
  2. a recording was not published, was substantially edited or was subsequently removed/made unavailable.
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Section 6 - Availability and Use of Recordings

(21) The University holds a perpetual licence to use Teaching Material, including material presented in recorded lectures, as defined in the University’s IP Intellectual Property Policy.

(22) No person may share recordings with third parties, either in whole or in part, or disseminate them through any media beyond those used in the subject, without consent of the University.

(23) A recording that contains personal information, as per section 8, will only be made available to students enrolled in the year and session of the subject for which the recording was made. 

(24) Recordings may be made available to students enrolled in subsequent instances of the subject if the recording has been reviewed and edited to:

  1. remove personal information of individuals other than the Lecturer; and
  2. ensure the contents of the recording is current.

(25) Students are not permitted to share, alter or otherwise make a recording available for downloading or use by others. Inappropriate use of a recording by a student may contravene university policy and their action may be subject to the Student Conduct Rules.

(26) Guest lecturers may request access to their recorded lecture. If a guest lecturer was one of several presenters, all presenters must consent to this access or the recording must be edited to provide only the individual presenter’s part of the lecture.

(27) The University of Wollongong will not use recorded lectures for performance management or as a substitute for employing a lecturer.

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Section 7 - Management of Recordings

(28) Wherever possible all recorded learning experiences will be made available to the students enrolled in the subject through the subject Moodle site as soon as possible after the lecture and within 48 hours of being recorded.

(29) Where a recording cannot be made available within 48 hours, for example, if the recording requires editing before publication, students must be advised of when the recording will become available.

(30) Recordings will remain available to students while Moodle site access is available.

(31) Recordings will be retained by the University for a period of four years and then deleted.

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Section 8 - Privacy Considerations

(32) The University recognises that recorded learning experiences may contain the incidentally collected personal information such as the likenesses, voices, names, and opinions of students and other individuals present at the time of the recording.

(33) The University will take reasonable steps to notify the individuals of:

  1. the fact that the information is being collected;
  2. the purposes for which the information is being collected;
  3. the intended recipients of the information; and
  4. the existence of any rights to access and correct the information collected.

(34) The University meets its privacy obligations in relation to recorded learning experiences by:

  1. providing students with advice on how we manage personal information in our Student Privacy and Disclosure Statement;
  2. notifying students, via the Subject Outline and/or Subject Moodle site, that they may be recorded during learning experiences such as lectures and/or synchronous online learning experiences; and
  3. ensuring that that recordings are made available on a secure platform (such as Moodle) to students who are enrolled in the class.

(35) In such circumstances, as per clause 32, a staff member, student or other person present during the lecture, or their nominated advocate, may ask to access the recording in order to correct personal information.

(36) The Subject Coordinator or other staff member with appropriate access to recordings may, if necessary, edit the recording to correct or remove personal information.

(37) Subject Coordinators who are unsure if the recording can be deemed to contain personal information, or if it is necessary to correct or remove this information, should consult the University’s Privacy Policy.

(38) Should it not be possible to edit a recording appropriately, the recording may be withdrawn in accordance clauses 19, 20 and 21.

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Section 9 - Copyright Considerations

(39) All University staff and students must comply with the University’s Copyright Policy.

(40) University staff and students are permitted to perform, play, screen and communicate third-party copyright materials in a face to face learning experience (not including online or distance education), for example, in the course of giving educational instruction provided that the audience to the class is limited to people taking part in the class.

(41) Where a learning experience is recorded and the recording is made available to students via Moodle or other video conferencing platform, the recorded lecture is considered a reproduction (copy) of the third-party copyright material, and therefore an electronic communication of that copy.

(42) The University may rely on the statutory licences granted under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) to copy and communicate third party copyright materials such as text, images and broadcasts, as well as the sector wide licences granted by the music collecting societies to copy, communicate, perform and play sound recordings and musical works. Refer to the Table 1 below for permissible copyright materials that the University may include in recorded lectures or learning experiences.

Table 1: Permissible Materials

Material Licence Granted Source of Licence
Literary and dramatic works (not including computer programs) May copy and communicate for the sole purpose of educating UOW students. Section 113P(1) of the Copyright Act­ as administered by the Copyright Agency Limited
Images and artistic works May copy and communicate for the sole purpose of educating UOW students. Section 113P(1) of the Copyright Act as administered by the Copyright Agency Limited
Sheet music (not sound recording) May copy and communicate for the sole purpose of educating UOW students Section 113P(1) of the Copyright Act as administered by the Copyright Agency Limited
TV or radio broadcasts that were:
Recorded at the time of the broadcast;
Downloaded or streamed from the broadcaster’s website after the broadcast (ie. television/movies from SBS onDemand and ABC iView or podcasts of radio shows);
Obtained from a resource centre
May copy and communicate for the sole purpose of educating UOW students. Section 113P(2) of the Copyright Act as administered by the Audio-Visual Copyright Society Ltd t/a Screenrights
Sound recordings and musical works listed with APRA/AMCOS/ARIA/PPCA May reproduce, copy, communicate and perform for educational purposes (including for download via intranet/LMS). Sector wide licence between Universities Australia and APRA/AMCOS/ARIA/PPCA (Universities Music Licence).

(43) Copyright notices found at http://uow.libguides.com/copyright/notices of the University library site should be applied to each recorded lecture in relation to the relevant type of material.

(44) Third party materials not included in Table 1 may not be recorded and communicated to students via recorded lectures without a licence from the relevant copyright owner.

(45) Materials that are not included in Table 1 (and thus not permitted to be reproduced and communicated in reliance on the statutory licences or, where relevant, the Universities Music Licence) are:

  1. audio recordings that are not broadcasts and not covered by the Universities Music Licence (e.g. private recordings)
  2. audio-visual materials made available via online streaming services provided by non-broadcasting services (e.g. clips from YouTube, films and shows from Netflix);
  3. commercially purchased feature films and television shows. 

(46) The materials under clause 45 may only be incorporated in recorded lectures or learning experiences made available via Moodle or other video conferencing platform with the permission of the copyright owner.

(47) All copyrighted material should be clearly attributed to the copyright owner and/or creator.

(48) The amount of copyright material that is copied or communicated must not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the owner of the copyright. Including entire books, films or plays in recorded lectures should be avoided, particularly if those books, films or plays are easily available to students for purchase.

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Section 10 - Roles and Responsibilities

(49) The University is responsible for providing Policy and Procedures to support fair and equitable access to recorded lectures for all students.

(50) Subject Coordinators and Lecturers are responsible for acting in accordance with these Procedures and the Subject Delivery Policy.

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Section 11 - Definitions

Word/Term Definition
Contact hours The way the learning experiences in a subject will be delivered, for example, “a subject has a one hour lecture and a two hour tutorial each week”. Contact hours are maintained in University systems such as COSMOS.
COSMOS The acronym ‘COSMOS’ refers to the University’s Course and Subject Management Online System, also known as a curriculum management system.
Learning experience The range of class formats in which students are taught, in the delivery of a subject or unit of study. Terms regularly used for different types of learning experiences at the University include but are not limited to: lecture; tutorial; seminar; workshop; practical; and placement.
Lecture
For the purpose of these Procedures, a lecture is defined as the traditional mode of instruction – ‘teaching by telling’ ‐ where an instructor (lecturer) delivers information, which is often accompanied by visual aids, to a classroom of students. A lecture may involve some elements of interactivity, but this is not the substantial mode of instruction. The lecture is typically delivered to large groups of students. Under this definition, student activity is generally limited to taking notes and/or asking the occasional, unprompted question.
Personal information Personal information, for the purpose of this Policy, refers to personal information defined in PPIPA (or as amended in PPIPA from time to time) as:

“Information or an opinion (including information or an opinion forming part of a database and whether or not recorded in a material form) about an individual whose identity is apparent or can reasonably be ascertained from the information or opinion.”
PPIPA The Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998

(51) Further definitions relating to the delivery of subjects, teaching and assessment are contained in the Code of Practice - Learning and Teaching.