What does the term "fair-use exception" mean?

Responses

to use only material that has never been published
to use only material that has never been published

the ability to use material made by others for educational purposes
the ability to use material made by others for educational purposes

an exception to copyright restrictions for images only
an exception to copyright restrictions for images only

Educational material is no longer under copyright.

No, that is not correct. Fair-use exception allows for the limited use of copyrighted material without obtaining permission from the copyright owner for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research. It does not mean that educational material is automatically not under copyright.