Copyright Law and teachers

I had no idea how much this effects most everything that goes on in the classroom, from handouts on geometry, to selections for language arts, to just about everything electronic. Teachers seem to think nothing of just throwing a video or DVD in, and just recently my school had a promotion ceremony that included a slide show complete with accompanying soundtracks, of which, I don't think they actually had the rights to use because they used whole songs by very popular artists. It bleeds through everything. From teachers with software from SMARTboards, to software suites, everything now seems to be heading toward the electronic mediums, and it is good to know that sites like Creative Commons are out there to help teachers make sure that they are staying within copyright guidelines.