Games sometimes rely on art, music, or sound to convey meaning. Use of copyrighted material is acceptable when the game is exclusively used for an educational purpose, and is not sold or used for promotion. However, it is strongly suggested that students try their hand at creating these assets themselves using free tools, or by looking into some of the royalty free resources that are available online. Here are a few places to start:
Graphics – http://www.pixelprospector.com/the-big-list-of-royalty-free-graphics/
Music & Sound – http://videogamecaster.com/royalty-free-music-and-sounds
Teacher Resources – http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fairprojects/project_ideas/CompSci_Teacher_VideoGame_Resources.shtml
Broadcast Education Association
Broadcast Education Association is a non-profit organization that provides a critical link between colleges and the broadcast industry. While the membership is primarily for institutions of higher learning and industry professionals a wealth of information and contacts are available. The site provides a variety of links to university/instructional programs, course assignments and requirements, key research websites, academic job openings, and a multimedia bibliography. Scholarships are available to students of member institutions; several of which are in California. Excellent career opportunities can be fund under "Academic Job Openings" and "Media Sites"
Cable in the Classroom
Cable in the Classroom is the companion web site for Cable in the Classroom Magazine and the programming provided free to public and private schools via cable television service. The site provides information to help teachers use cable programming effectively in their classrooms. The site provides program and schedule information, support materials and lesson plans, copyright clearance information, information on media literacy plus research and professional development information. When first visiting the site be sure to visit the links at the top of the page to get an overview of what is available. A browse programs by subject feature is also available at the top of the page. The link to discussion groups is found at the bottom of the page.
Center for Media Literacy 2000
"Center for Media Literacy, a nonprofit organization, is dedicated to the ability to communicate in all media forms, print and electronic, as well as to access, understand, analyze and evaluate the powerful images, words and sounds that make up our contemporary media culture." This is an excellent background resource for teachers offering conferences, satellite broadcasts, lesson plans, articles.
World Wide Art Resources
World Wide Art Resources is a privately funded arts web site that has been in operation since 1995. The site contains an impressive range of global and local information on art history, art exhibits, galleries, and news. A large portion of the site is dedicated to online artist portfolios that feature more than 6000 artists. The site claims that 100,000 works are viewed by visitors every day. For artists and students interested in the business of selling their work, this is an educational introduction to the pricing and the online marketing process. A search engine is provided with links to performing arts, academia, employment opportunities and funding for the arts sites.
Arts Journal
Artsjournal.com has direct links to interesting and important news stories about the arts that are updated daily. Type "copyright" in the site's search engine and find up-to-date articles on copyright laws as they specifically pertain to the arts.