Showing papers in "Journal of Legal Education in 1998"

Teach in Context: Responding to Diverse Student Voices Helps All Students Learn

Abstract: When my daughter was two years old, I was reading a book with her. She was holding the book and, as one can do with children, we spent an inordinate amount of time pointing to all the different things on one page. I finally got tired of looking at the same page, so I asked her to turn the page. She said, "Okay," and rotated the book. We were still looking at the same page, only now it was upside down. People interpret words and new information within the context of their prior experience and knowledge, and in accordance with what they believe to be the purpose for the information. Given my daughter's context and purpose, her interpretation of "turn the page" was valid. To her, rotating was the same as turning, and rotating served the purpose of giving us something different to look at: the picture did look different upside down. Because her interpretation served her context and purpose, my daughter had no reason to wonder whether she understood me. If I had not observed how she interpreted my words, and then explained that I meant flip the page rather than rotate it, she would have continued to make the same error, without ever realizing that she was mistaken. This happens to law students. We think they know what we mean by "turn the page," but in fact many do not, Because they do not understand the context and purpose of what is being taught, they often make errors, and the errors go undetected because there is little meaningful dialog between student and teacher until the exam-which is too late to help students. This disjunction between what teachers mean and how students interpret what is being taught explains why a significant number of law students are not learning or performing at the level of their capabilities. In part the problem is their lack of context. Although that is a challenge for all students, it is often PaulaLstbader is Director of the Academic Resource Program at the Seattle University School of Law. She thanks her research assistant, Zoe Ann Olson, and all the students who willingly shared their experiences.

The Second Amendment as Teaching Tool in Constitutional Law Classes

Abstract: Basic con law classes are meant to teach students some fundamental legal skills: Considering contentious moral questions from all sides, even those sides for which one has a visceral revulsion. Using the various modalities of interpretive argument -interpretation focused on text, original meaning, the interplay of political structures, changed circumstances, precedent, and the the implications of "fundamental," though unwritten, values within the American ethos. Thinking about how law can check power. Arguing articulately about the clash between solemn constitutional guarantees and eminently worthy countervailing government interests.

Electronic Lawyering and the Academy.

Abstract: The author challenges the conventional perception: that training law students in technology can be delegated exclusively to some one other than the professor. Legal educators can no longer avoid responsibility for educating their graduates in a way which does not adequately prepare them for the existing and future demands of law practice. This article does not address the initial form of Distance Learning--where one teacher conducts a class in two or more locations via televideo. Instead, the author provides advice on the advantages and disadvantages of three available modes for the "other" educational medium: (1) an e-mail extension of the classroom; (2) using the Internet to augment classroom resources; and/or (3) undertaking a fully electronic class--with no physical location for teacher or student, with all class materials and the examination(s) being conducted online.

The Impact of a Pass/Fail Option on Negotiation Course Performance.

Abstract: Law faculties frequently debate the appropriateness of pass/fail grading options. They must decide whether to have such grading alternatives at all, and whether to limit their use. Should pass/fail grading be restricted to upper-class electives, to nontraditional courses, to skills classes, or to clinical offerings? Should students in a particular course have the right to choose either a conventional grade or the credit/no-credit alternative, or should a course be designated as graded or pass/fail and all students in it treated alike?1