Classroom is not 'in public'

Fortunately for educational institutions, there is a provision in the Copyright Act in section 28 that deems performances in class in the course of educational instruction not to be in public, so long as the audience is limited to those taking part in the instruction. The performance may be by the teacher or the students. The term ‘class’ covers lectures, tutorials and other forms of face to face instruction. It does not cover online courses of instruction.

This means that musical and other works can be performed live in lectures and tutorials without permission of the copyright owner. It also means that sound recordings can be played in class without the permission of the copyright owner. It also means that films and videos can be screened in class without the permission of the copyright owner. This is despite what it might state on the packaging or the video about strictly for home use. The Copyright Act overrides statements like these.