The Fourth "Colonial Frontier" Legal Writing Conference — Saturday, December 6, 2014

The Fourth "Colonial Frontier" Legal Writing Conference — Saturday, December 6, 2014

Hosted by: The Duquesne University School of Law, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Conference Theme: Teaching the Academically Underprepared Law Student

            For generations, college and law school educators have often voiced the belief that their students are not as prepared as they used to be.  Although some educators may disagree about whether there really has been a change in students since the apocryphal “good old days,” there is a growing body of scholarship suggesting that 21st Century college graduates and law students lack the critical thinking skills necessary for law study and that as educators we are facing new challenges in teaching these students.  See e.g. Richard Arum & Josipa Roksa, Academically Adrift: Limited Learning On College Campuses (2011); Susan Stuart & Ruth Vance, Bringing a Knife to a Gunfight: The Academically Underprepared Law Student & Legal Education Reform,  48 Val. L. Rev. 1 (forthcoming 2013), available at  http://works.bepress.com/ruth_vance/1 (the theme of this conference is based on this article’s title).  Scholars and other commentators have pointed to many causes for the real (and perhaps perceived) problems that new law students have coping with the demands of academic and professional training.  These causes include the declining quality of pre-college schooling and a focus on standardized testing, lowered expectations at the undergraduate level, a decrease in the numbers and “quality” of incoming law students, the generational characteristics of current law students, the effects on student learning from psychological problems such as anxiety disorders, the deleterious influence of the Internet and computer technology, and more.  This conference will offer attendees an opportunity to hear from others who are interested in these questions, and, hopefully, learn how to better teach current law students or change the current educational environment.

            We invite proposals from educators who want to speak to these issues.   The Duquesne Law Review, which has published papers from two previous Colonial Frontier conferences, plans to devote space in its Spring 2015 symposium issue to papers from the conference.

            We welcome proposals for 30-minute and 50-minute presentations on these topics, by individuals or panels.  Proposals for presentations should be sent as an e-mail file attachment in MS Word to Professor Jan Levine at [email protected] by June 2, 2014.  He will confirm receipt of all submissions.  Proposals for presentations should be 1000 to 2000 words long, and should denote the topic to be addressed, the amount of time sought for the presentation, any special technological needs for the session, the presenter’s background and institutional affiliation, and contact information.  Proposals should note whether the presenter intends to submit an article to the Duquesne Law Review, based on the presentation.  Proposals by co-presenters are welcome.  Proposals will be reviewed by Professors Julia Glencer, Jan Levine, Ann Schiavone, and Tara Willke of the Duquesne University School of Law, and by the editorial staff of the Duquesne Law Review.

            Proposals for presentations will be accepted by June 15, 2014.  Full drafts of related articles will be due by September 5, 2014; within a month of that date the Duquesne Law Review will determine which of those articles it wishes to publish; and final versions of articles will be due by January 12, 2015.

The attendance fee for the conference will be $50 for non-presenters.  Duquesne will provide free on-site parking to conference  attendees.  The conference will begin 9:00 a.m. with a welcoming breakfast and reception at the Duquesne University School of Law, followed by two hours of presentations.  We will provide a catered, on-campus lunch, followed by 90 additional minutes of presentations, ending at approximately 3:00 p.m.  We will then host a closing reception in the “Bridget and Alfred Pelaez Legal Writing Center,” the home of Duquesne’s LRW program.  

Pittsburgh is an easy drive or short flight from many cities.  To accommodate persons wishing to stay over in Pittsburgh on Friday or Saturday evenings, Duquesne will arrange for a block of discounted rooms at a downtown hotel adjacent to campus, within walking distance of the law school and downtown Pittsburgh.  We will also provide attendees with information about the Pittsburgh area’s attractions, including our architectural treasures, museums, art collections, shopping, and world-championship sports teams.