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When my 2nd grader needs to know the meaning of a word, I tell him to use my iPhone to ask Siri, an artificial intelligence program that's always happy to look it up for him. Siri, in turn, uses the free online program Wolfram Alpha, one of the most powerful data analysis tools in the world. If you enter into the Siri (or Wolfram Alpha) search box, by text or voice, "arable land in world divided by world population," in less than a second the phone or computer will find the relevant data; do the calculations; provide the answer—in square miles, acres, square feet, and hectares per person—and cite you its sources.

call the process of envisioning such technically enhanced possibilities imag-u-cation. It's something every teacher and class should spend some time doing.

With YouTube, for example, students can post their ideas to the world and get rapid global feedback. With tools like Twitter and its cousins, they can follow firsthand details of events unfolding anywhere in the world, from revolutions to natural disasters. With mashups and related techniques, they can combine sophisticated data sources in powerful new ways. One school group I know of created a Second Life model of Los Angeles, using the database of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to show each plane flying in its actual spot! With Skype-like tools, students can connect with experts and peers around the world in real time.

Educators (especially librarians) should be copyright counselors, not copyright cops. Our primary role should be helping people make good personal judgements about the use of others' intellectual property.

While there are those who would disagree, I do believe intellectual property creators should have control over how their work is used, have the right to charge for it, and have the right to deter unauthorized copying. An increasing number of people make their living by being creative for us to ignore theft and misuse.

Please remember that I am not a lawyer - although I sometimes play one on the Internet. But I am an educator and one thing I always think about is the example I set. Making copyright decisions in the open, with a clear conscience, might be the best guide of all.

Generally, the place where teachers and students get into trouble when it comes to copyrighted music is when anyone is doing something for a COMMERCIAL purpose (like a fundraiser) and using copyrighted content without permission, or when they are RE-PUBLISHING content without permission on the “open web.” (The public Internet, on a website which does not require a login or authentication to access it.)