Open Licensing Checklist (pdf)
Open Licensing Checklist
Overview
Use this checklist to make sure that all the requirements for open licensing are met. Please note that it is very helpful to review this checklist BEFORE you begin development work so that you are designing your resource with open licensing requirements in mind from the beginning.
Checklist and Additional Resources
Are you ready to add an open license to your work?
Use this checklist to make sure your resource meets the requirements for open licensing.
Be sure to review the checklist BEFORE you begin development work so that you are designing your resource with open licensing requirements in mind from the beginning.
Checklist
- All graphics (charts, pictures, clip art) are openly licensed or in the public domain.
- All written content is original, openly licensed, in the public domain, or you have obtained written permission to use.
- An attribution statement for each content element from a different source has been included. This attribution includes the title (if known), author, license and links to those items.
Example: CK-12 Biology for High School by CK-12 is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 License.
Example - Shortened version: CK-12 Biology for High School by CK-12 | CC BY NC
- Work is available in an editable format (a PDF may also be included).
- If your district holds copyright on staff-created work (most common), you have permission from your district to apply an open license.
- Choose the most flexible open license that does not conflict with the licenses that govern work you are including. Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) preferred.
- Open license text, icon, and associated links have been added to the resource.
Example for Original Work:
Example Resource by Copyright Holder is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Example for Adapted Work:
Example Resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. This is a derivative work by Jane Doe adapted from Original Resource Name by Original Creator.
See more examples in the Attribution and License Example document.
- Link to lesson, unit, or course has been submitted or resource has been uploaded to or created on the Washington OER Hub.
Resources
Quickstart Guide to Openly Licensed Images and Attribution | OSPI
OER Development - Resource Tracking Template | OSPI
Copyright and Open Licensing Guide | OSPI
Sample Permissions Request Letter | OSPI
Best Practices in Attribution | Creative Commons
Open Attribution Builder | Open Washington - State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
Choose a License | Creative Commons
Download Creative Commons License Logos | Creative Commons
Important Terms
Copyright - the legal protection that gives the copyright owner the right to reproduce, adapt, distribute, display, and perform the work. Copyright covers both published and unpublished works. Works do not need to be registered.
Copyright licenses - outline the specific permissions and restrictions that a copyright holder grants to someone else.
Open License (e.g. Creative Commons) – a license that grants permission to access, re-use and redistribute a work with few or no restrictions
Attribution –giving credit to a person or organization as the creator or copyright holder of a work. All open licenses have an attribution requirement.
Citation - allows authors to provide the source of any quotations, ideas, and information that they include in their own work based on the copyrighted works of other authors.
Cover photo by Lloyd Dewolf | CC BY NC
Except where otherwise noted, this work by the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. All logos and trademarks are property of their respective owners.
This document contains links to websites operated by third parties. These links are provided for your convenience only and do not constitute or imply any monitoring by OSPI. Please confirm the license status of any third-party resources and understand their terms of use before reusing them.