Depth and Complexity Icons: The Copyright Question

There’s ongoing confusion about what can and cannot be used when working with the Depth and Complexity framework.

The key is to separate the framework itself from the visuals often attached to it.

The Framework Is Freely Usable

The Depth and Complexity framework was developed in the mid-1990s by Bette Gould, Sandra Kaplan, and colleagues through work with the California Department of Education and a federally funded Javits grant.

Because of that origin, the framework is broadly shared and used without restriction. It is not owned by a company. Educators regularly use it in curriculum, training, and products without needing permission.

The Icons Were Never Official

The original work did include icons as visual prompts. However:

• There was no single, standardized visual set
• The emphasis was on the thinking prompts, not the artwork
• The icons were intentionally simple and easy to reproduce for students

In practice, teachers and students sketched them informally. Pencil drawings of lips, flowers, and question marks – not polished graphics.

Where Copyright Actually Applies

The framework and its prompts are conceptual tools. Those are not owned.

What can be owned:

• Specific graphic designs of the icons
• Packaged visual sets created by companies or organizations

So:

• You can use the framework and its prompts freely
• You should not reuse a specific company’s icon designs without permission

A Practical Option for Digital Work

If you want a clean, usable digital version without licensing concerns, use emoji.

Emoji are:

• Fast to type
• Widely recognized
• Available through open-source sets like Twemoji (with attribution requirements)

Example mappings:

• 💬 Language of the Discipline
• 🌸 Details
• ❓ Unanswered Questions

Read my full breakdown on Depth, Complexity, and Emoji Icons here.

Bottom Line

• The framework and prompts are freely usable
• The icons exist as ideas, not as a single protected set
• Specific graphic versions can be copyrighted
• You can safely use your own drawings or neutral alternatives like emoji

More on Depth and Complexity icons and how to use them.