Law School Academic Support Blog

The Never Ending Workday

Lamb Chop started singing "this is a song that never ends.  Yes, it goes on and on, my friends.  Some people started singing it, not knowing what it was.  And they'll continue singing it forever just because . . ."

For some, that brought back childhood memories.  For others, it describes the new daily routine.  Students need help transitioning to online learning, and they have legitimate questions about upcoming bar exams, grading, academic standing, finals, etc.  The listservs buzz with non-stop information.  Law school faculties are debating different options for student questions, and most of us still have our normal teaching load along with administrative tasks.  Not to mention, some of us are also parents and newly homeschooling, with varying degrees of success and marker damage.  Shelter in place orders combined with the flood of obligations have created the never ending workday.

Everyone has a different home setup.  I assume that some people cannot sequester to an office and let freedom reign in the rest of the house.  To solve that problem, my "office" is the kitchen counter where I can see a large area of my house.  My laptops and binders are on the counter.  The easy accessibility and non-stop problems means when I go to get the 8 o'clock snack, I can answer a handful of emails.  Answering emails is easy on my laptop.  I don't have the excuse that long emails are hard on my phone, so just a few quick emails.  I also need to record a quick video for class, so that is right at my fingertips.  Midnight snack and clear email.  Seems efficient and is probably common now.  Those actions will also drain us of both our physical and emotional energy right before the summer, which may or may not include the bar exam.  Now is the time to conserve energy, not over-expend it.

Weight loss experts tell people to get snacks out of sight because out of sight, out of mind.  James Clear in Atomic Habits says we can create habits by placing reminder items near an already existing habit.  Need to workout?  Put workout gear near where you change after work.  Need to take medicine?  Put the bottle near the coffee pot.  The psychology of habits is creating part of my problem.  I see my laptop and know I can send emails fast.  I answer a few.  I know recording an answer analysis takes 10 minutes, so I do it.  And I will continue working forever, just because . . .

We all know breaks are necessary.  We tell students to take breaks while studying.  Most of us can spout off the mental health benefits of only studying in certain locations.  If anything in the post describes you (it does me), then we also need to take our own advice.  This is a unique time, and our family, students, and friends need us fully charged.  We can't do that by working non-stop.  Let's try to put away work objects to end our workday when it is supposed to end.

(Steven Foster)

Thoughts for Students Now Learning Online

I know the transition to online learning is tough.  The obstacles are different for each person, and the online format is more difficult to engage.  My advice to all students relies on 2 major themes, planning and engagement.  Planning is similar to the advice I give throughout the year, but planning for online learning is a little more difficult especially with additional responsibilities for many law students.  Evaluating whether the plan works and what adjustments to make is critical.  Engagement focuses on doing specific actions to ensure you are engaged in every lecture.

Planning and engagement come in many forms.  Numerous sources of information flooded the market lately.  Use the advice that will help you plan and engage.  The 2 articles I liked recently are The National Jurist's Coronavirus Survival Guide and The Law School Playbook's 30 Day Challenge.  Don't try to dramatically change how you study.  Pick a couple tips that will improve your planning and engagement.

Don't try every resource you find.  Find what works for you, and give the last month of class your best effort.  Everyone knows this is a difficult time.  All you can do is put in your best effort.  Everyone's best right now will be different based on circumstances, so focus on doing what you can in your circumstances to succeed.

(Steven Foster)

The Bar Examiners Don't Seem to Be Listening

There is so much that goes into the making of a bar exam. There are layers of research, accountability, and quality control involved in the drafting of the questions. There is beta testing of the exam content. There is scoring, rescoring, and equating. And there are levels of exam security that rival Area 51. The parties involved range from statisticians to politicians, who cautiously weigh input from the podium, the bar, and the bench. To top it all off, the job of bar examiner – at least at the state level – is a modestly compensated appointment that is held all the while keeping a day job of managing a law practice, or ruling from the bench. Too little appreciation is shown to our almost volunteer bar examiners in times of rest and high passage rates. So, I sincerely and thankfully shout out bar examiners everywhere who discharge an office of such societal importance. And I use the term bar examiners in the collective to include every role, from essay graders to the character and fitness investigators, from the licensure analysts to the admission administrators and honorable members of the board.

Bar examiners have to operate independently and make decisions about scoring and bar admissions that will be unpopular to some. But the examiners must make decisions, and it is the failure or delay in reaching a particularly important decision that has placed examiners under fire across the country. That decision: what about the July 2020 exam?

It is understandable to the legal and lay public that a law license is a privilege not to be indiscriminately awarded. It is equally clear that security protocols must be in place to maintain the integrity of the exam. What is not understandable is how some examiners can fail to make adjustments in the face of the extreme and dire circumstances of the COVID pandemic.  In less than two weeks’ time, the nation’s ABA-accredited law schools went entirely online, trained faculty (many with limited technology skills) for online teaching, and adopted pass-fail grading. There is simply no excuse for bar examiners to not be just as creative and as willing to implement emergency protocols for the prospective July 2020 examinees.

This week 1,000+ students, representing all of New York’s law schools, petitioned the New York State Bar Association’s Task Force on the New York Bar Examination for an emergency diploma privilege. Days later, New York canceled the July exam. Adding ambiguity to injury, the exam has been rescheduled to the fall, but no date is provided to examinees who need to make study, travel, and lodging plans for the two-day exam. Are you kidding us?  It’s almost like the examiners are not listening. At all.

A reasonably prudent person will interpret the New York decision as a signal for other states to follow. New York is considered highly influential, as its 2016 adoption of UBE was followed by Illinois, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, and others. The 2020 bar takers are not asking the examiners to give away law licenses without merit. They —joined in large number by law faculty, deans and alumni— are asking for necessary emergency licensing measures. They are asking examiners to think outside of the traditional bar exam box. They are asking that fairness, humanity, and the chance to earn a living be prioritized  over security worries. They are asking the examiners to listen.

(Marsha Griggs)

Excerpted from An Epic Fail,  Volume 64 Howard Law Journal _____ (2020)(forthcoming).

New York Bar Exam Postponed

Sometimes what you plan to write gets scrapped.  As I sat down to post this evening, New York postponed the July Bar Exam.  You can read the press release here:   https://www.nybarexam.org/Press/PressRelease_NY_BarExam.pdf

This will have a major impact on a number of students.  I encouraged my potential New York takers to look at other UBE jurisdictions with late filing deadlines in April and May.  The NCBE Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admissions has information here.

This is unprecedented, so advice will be rampant.  Everyone should evaluate their own individual situation to make a decision.  More information on the timing for transferring scores is needed to know whether another UBE exam would work.  

I hope everyone is healthy and safe during this unique situation.

NCBE Update - July 2020 Bar Exam Decision Timeline

Hat Tips to Prof. Antonia (Toni) Miceli (St. Louis University) and Prof. Kirsha Trychta (West Virginia University)...

As of today March 26, 2020, the NCBE has just issued an announcement regarding COVID-19's potential impact for the upcoming July 2020 bar exam.  

To summarize the NCBE announcement:

• First, the NCBE indicates that each jurisdiction will make its own decision as to whether it can administer a July 2020 bar exam.

• Second, the NCBE will issue a decision around Tuesday, May 5, 2020, as to whether the NCBE can "deploy" the MBE (multiple-choice exam), the MEE (essay exam), and the MPT (legal analysis/writing performance test) for use by state bar examiners for the July 2020 bar exam.

• Third, the NCBE has announced that, even if the July 2020 bar exam goes forward, it will offer additional materials for use by jurisdictions for either an additional or alternative Fall 2020 exam (dates to be finalized).

For complete details, please see today's March 26, 2020 NCBE announcement via the following link:

http://www.ncbex.org/ncbe-covid-19-updates/

(Scott Johns)

It's Time to Consider Licensure Alternatives for the Class of 2020

The Class of 2020 has suffered blows like no other graduating class. Domestic K-12, undergraduate, and graduate students alike have been informed that they are not allowed to return to their physical campuses, and must continue their school year online. Hardest hit are the presumptive graduates of the class of 2020. They must forego prom, senior skip day, all manner of internships and externships, competitions - from moot court to state basketball playoffs, science fairs, presentations, and call-back interviews. These students resume academic life, complete with homework and online class presentations, only to confront the added heartbreak of not being able to walk across the stage adorned in cap and gown or hood. My heart aches for the entire class of 2020 who will be unavoidably denied a great rite of passage: the commencement and hooding ceremony with all its pomp and circumstance. 

But for law school graduates, the heartache may not end with foiled graduation plans. All medical and environmental indicators would suggest that the July bar exam cannot go forward as scheduled.¹ But eleven law professors have said: Enough. While none of us can undo any of the devastating impact of COVID-19, state and national bar examiners can and should consider alternatives to licensure to maintain the influx of new lawyers into the legal profession. In a recently distributed policy paper, The Bar Exam and the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Need for Immediate Action, Professor Deborah Jones Merritt joined with ten other notable legal scholars to pose alternatives to licensure that would allow 2020 law graduates to enter the ranks of the legal profession without costly and undue delay.

According to the paper, the legal system depends on a yearly influx of new law graduates to maintain service to clients. The scholars, in a unified voice, reasonably predict that the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic will create an increased need for legal services. Says Merritt et al., “[o]ur 2020 graduates have knowledge and skills that will be particularly helpful in responding to the legal needs of a population stricken by COVID-19,” as “these graduates are fully equipped to function online, a skill that some senior lawyers lack.”

The paper poses six alternatives to the standard summer exam administration, and argues that postponing the exam for weeks or months is not a viable alternative with the uncertainty and medically likely resurgence of the COVID-19 virus. The paper’s authors urge the licensing jurisdictions, and most notably the NCBE that controls the Multistate exams, to consider an emergency diploma privilege, or supervised practice as an alternative in this limited and exigent circumstance that the pandemic presents.

Whether or not the bar examiners agree with the proposals, the time to act decisively is now. Keeping the class of 2020 in limbo about the administration of the July exam, piles onto the existing educational disruptions it has already suffered. Any substantial postponement of the exam will have harmful effects on the candidates who hope to join the legal profession this year.

According to Tammy King, Assistant Dean for Professional Development at Washburn School of Law, “the public service employers who need someone who can practice immediately are among those most likely to wait to make offers or to make offers and start dates contingent on bar passage.” According to reported NALP data, as many as 41.3% of 2017 graduates who were employed within 10 months after graduation secured their jobs after bar results were released. CUNY Law professor @allierobbins may speak for the class of 2020, in a March 23 tweet, "Dear Bar Examiners, Please Listen to these Women."

(Marsha Griggs)

1 The National Conference of Bar Examiners’ website contains the following update regarding administration of the July 2020 exam: “The bar exam is administered by individual jurisdictions, not by NCBE. We are in close contact with jurisdiction bar admission agencies as they consider possible options for the July exam in the event that shutdowns and prohibitions against large gatherings remain in effect.”

Nearing the Closing Stretch

Dave Johnson bellowed "and down the stretch they come" during the Kentucky Derby from 1978-2017.  I watched the Derby with my grandparents for years, so every time something is nearing a finish line, I always think of that line.  That line also makes me think of another sports cliché I love, which is to finish strong.  The current changes to online learning may have distracted many from the reality that the semester is in the final turn, and we are about to be in the stretch run.

The end of the semester is only a few short weeks away.  My school is coming back from Spring Break this week, and finals begin at the beginning of May.  Some schools will have a reading period, so many places only have 3-4 weeks of instruction left.  Finals are closer than most think.

With finals so close, I encourage everyone to begin testing knowledge and receiving feedback.  If finals start in 5 weeks, then everyone can get feedback on 3-4 practice problems in each subject.  Try to complete 3-4 problems a week.  Pick the most likely tested topics in each of your classes, starting with the material early in the semester, and write an answer in timed conditions.  Send your answer to your professor or Academic Support person.  The goal is to both work on essay writing and knowledge of the material.  Do that every week through the end of the semester.

Distractions abound in the world right now.  Most of them are very serious and need attention.  Everything changing makes it easy to forget critical components for finals preparation.  Don't forget to continue to prepare for finals because they will be here in just a few furlongs.

(Steven Foster)

Flood of Information

COVID-19 dramatically changed the way we all experience life.  Social distancing and quarantines require using technology for work and education.  Most of us utilize technology regularly through email, word processors, databases, etc., but fully online working and education is not the norm.  Everyone will need to adjust to a new normal.

The new normal requires new engagement methods and instruction.  I downloaded a free trial of a program to create interactive online lectures because I worried zoom wouldn't engage large classes.  However, my attempts will probably have flaws.  Many instructors will use zoom, and students will learn the material.  They will also probably make some mistakes.  The reality is everyone, instructors and students, will make mistakes.  

Most of us know mistakes will happen.  We even say we will cut students some slack.  Will we cut ourselves slack though?  In the past week, I saw more emails on the ASP listserv about online tools, best practices, conference calls, etc. than any other given week.  I am overjoyed that our community is willing to help each other reach our students.  The amount of information though is overwhelming.  In the constant drive to reach every student and be flawless in our instruction, we may have unleashed an overwhelming flood of information.  The tools are limitless, and instruction is happening now.  Some may try to accumulate and evaluate all the tools to pick what will work best.  I am not sure if that is the best practice in this moment.

Right now, our students need us mentally ready to help them through a difficult situation.  We tell students to stay mentally fresh throughout a semester and the bar exam.  We need to take the same advice right now.  No system or tool is going to be perfect.  Find one that will accomplish your goals, and commit to that for the rest of the semester.  Students don't expect any of us to be perfect or have all the answers right now.  What they expect is someone to help and be available.  I am not discouraging seeking information.  I heard the conference call last week was amazing.  Definitely pay attention to information.  Just don't overindulge to the exclusion of other important mental health activities during this crisis.  Being present and there for each other and our students will have the biggest impact on their education.

I hope everyone is safe and healthy.

(Steven Foster)

Is E-Learning Real Learning?

Some people wonder if "e-learning" is real.  I poked around the internet and it looks like there are plenty of studies on both sides of the coin.  

But I have to say from firsthand personal experience that I know that e-learning is real...and that it works.  Here's the details (but please don't tell anyone because I'm embarrassed to tell the story):

Prior to my start in academic support, as a practicing attorney, I had a video-conference hearing in a courtroom in Colorado.  I liked to be in the courtroom early, so, as I sat in the courtroom awaiting the judge, I noticed that the opposing party and her counsel were not present.  

At that point, the judge came in, and, with the hearing set to momentarily start, the judge asked the courtroom clerk on the video-conference to go out and look for the opposing party and counsel. Before waiting for the clerk's response, I bolted upright and blurted out loud, "I'll go look for them.  They might just be in the waiting room."  

At that, the judge remarked: "Mr. Johns, you do know that Salt Lake City is a good 500 miles away from Denver, and that, while appreciating your willingness to help today, it might just be a touch too much to drive to the courthouse in Utah before the close of today's court session."

We all had a good chuckle, and I was mighty glad that no one but the judge (and the courtroom clerks in Denver and Salt Lake City) knew about my impulsive offer to leap to help.

Here's what I learned.

You see, even though we were having a video-conference courtroom hearing, it was as real as life to me.  So real that I completely forgot about the geographical expanse - not to mention the massive Rocky Mountain ranges - that separated me from the opposing party and counsel on the other side of the case.  

So is "e-learning" real learning?

Well, it sure can be. But it all depends on our willingness to perceive it as such, to make it work as well or even better than in-person learning, to actually be in the moment relating with our students in order to reach them wherever they are.  

In my opinion, learning is a relational social experience. But, that doesn't mean that we need to be physically present in the same classroom with our students.  Indeed, as I learned through my experience in "online" litigation, what happens online can be just as powerful as what happens in the presence of each other.  

(Scott Johns).

P.S. Please keep this story just between you and me!

P.S.S. Still doubting the efficacy of e-learning? Here's a quick blurb from a Penn State blog about one student's perspective on using zoom this week:

"Someone in my bio class with more than 300 students accidentally started talking about the professor, not realizing her microphone was on, so that made things a bit awkward. The chat feature is enjoyable. I have seen conversations ranging from Jesus to nicotine. I also received an email from my English professor reminding us to wear clothes. Of course Zoom isn’t ideal, but it is pretty effective given the circumstances."  C. Nersten, Reviews: Zoom Classes, Onward State Blog, https://onwardstate.com/2020/03/17/os-reviews-zoom-classes/ 

...Reading between the lines, e-learning can be very effective, but it takes careful planning and curating by us, just like regular classes do...

 

 

Online Learning Resources and Tips

Currently, all ABA accredited law schools have moved online. This means many of us are in new territory when it comes to working with our students. Some schools already have online or hybrid programs, but for many, this is completely new!

I've been hosting bar workshops and classes on zoom for awhile now. I wanted to share some things that I have found to be useful when teaching on zoom, as well as lists of resources I've compiled from elsewhere. (Elsewhere being our listserv and twitter, or through colleagues)

My own tips:

1. If possible, ask that students leave video on. I find this works better to foster community, and you get better participation. 
2. However, they should mute their microphone when not talking. This one might be obvious, but even the sound of typing gets picked up on the microphone, and can be distracting to other students. 
3. The chat feature can be wonderful, but probably only in small groups. I find it works well if I have a workshop of under 20, but it would likely be distracting in a larger class. Its a great way for students to participate, or to keep track of questions until the end.
4. I have found the polling feature to be a great way to get people to participate. Obviously this is best used for multiple choice style questions, but I think it can be used creatively for all manner of things. 
5. Share screen to share essay prompts, sample answers, power points- great! However, the white board is great in theory, but I find it hard to use. Maybe it's me, or my lack or artistic ability. Instead, I pull up a blank word document, which I find easier to create charts and graphs on, like I would in a non virtual classroom.

Other resources:

CALI (Center for Computer Assisted Legal Instruction)

• Living up to their name, they have provided a great list of resources for computer assisted instruction: https://www.cali.org/corona
• Academic Support, or law school success, CALI Lessons - written by yours truly, our very own editor Steven Foster, Renee Nicole Allen, Courtney Abbott Hill, Allie Robbins, Laura Mott, and Nicole Lefton.  https://www.cali.org/category/1l-first-year-topics/law-school-success

And online learning guide from Roger William's  and LawTutors' Brittany Raposa:

https://lawtutors.net/online-learning-guidelines-in-the-wake-of-covid-19/

Suffolk Law's Sarah Schendel compiled a great list of resources on twitter:

https://twitter.com/s_james_s/status/1237529688437751810

and finally, an article about better focus with online learning:

https://99u.adobe.com/articles/6969/10-online-tools-for-better-attention-focus

 

If you have your own tips, or I've left out any great resources, please leave them in the comments!

(Melissa A. Hale)

 

A Message for Unchartered Territory

I'm sharing a message from Professor Janet Thompson Jackson of Washburn School of Law for all of us in this period of social distancing. Feel free to share it with your students or incorporate it into your own mindfulness meditation.

 

This is a very stressful and uncertain time.  None of us has lived through anything like this before.  You may be feeling scared or you may be unconcerned or you may be somewhere in the middle. However you are feeling is okay. I suggest you sit with your feelings for a bit and then ask yourself if where you are emotionally is serving you and others in a helpful way.

 

If you find yourself in a constant state of panic or worry, that is likely lowering your immune system, which is not what you want right now. Feeling some anxiety in a time of uncertainty is normal, but it’s good to make an effort to move out of that state. Try making a daily list of good things that happened during the day, even small things like laughing at a movie or show. Keeping a gratitude list helps us to shift perspective.

 

Or, you may be unconcerned and think that everyone is overreacting. That, too, is a legitimate feeling. It's good to realize, though, that your reaction may be your own response to stress. This might be a good time to extend some grace and compassion to others, including yourself.  Everyone is pretty much doing the best they can under the circumstances. Maybe demonstrating a sense of calm without any criticism is just what someone else needs right now.  You also may want to take some time to donate to an organization that is working to help people who are living in the margins and are particularly challenged at this time.

 

You may find yourself somewhere in between. You may vacillate between the extremes, but are able to come back to the middle most of the time. A good way to keep your equilibrium is to look for ways you can be of service. Is there someone you know who doesn’t do well with social isolation who could use a call or text (or even better, FaceTime or other video chat)? 

 

Here are some other ideas to help stay emotionally and physically healthy in uncertain times:

1.  Meditate. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Sitting or laying down and focusing on your breathing will work. Or stare at a candle for a few minutes or listen to calming music.  Even 5 minutes of mindfulness helps. Try it a couple times a day, like in the morning and before bed.  The effects last longer than you would think.
   
   
2. Give your devices a break. Isolation sometimes makes us even more attached to our devices, especially when we’re trying to keep up with the fast changing news. Try planning a time during the day or evening when you will not be on any device for an hour if possible. If that seems too long start with 15 min and work your way up.
   
   
3. Laugh. Find a funny movie, book, song — anything that makes you laugh. Laughing is good medicine.
   
   
4. Read something uplifting. Give the news a break and pick up a book that makes you feel good.
   
   
5. Move. The gym may not be a good idea right now, but you can work out, dance, do yoga or other
   movement at home.
   
   
6. Be kind. Just be kind to yourself and others. 
   
   
7. Sleep. Now is a great time to catch up.

Visiting Assistant Professor of Lawyering Skills at Western State College of Law

Western State College of Law:
One-Year Visiting Assistant Professor of Lawyering Skills Position

Job Duties:
Western State College of Law seeks applications for a full-time, one-year visiting Assistant Professor of Lawyering Skills position for the 2020-2021 academic year. The position is a one-year visiting contract, with the potential to convert into a long-term contract in the future.

Primary responsibilities include teaching and working with students in the law school’s Academic Success Program and Bar Preparation Program.
The successful candidate will: (1) teach a 1L week-long Orientation and semester-long skills class; (2) regularly meet individually with students and counsel them regarding academic, bar-related, analytical, and study skills; (3) help to supervise Dean’s Fellows (upper level students who work with first-year students); (4) observe the Director teach the bar preparation course in the fall to prepare for teaching a section in the spring; and (5) conduct workshops for students on calendaring, analysis, bar preparation and other topics. The successful candidate will also teach one or more spring-semester classes, which will be chosen in consultation with the Director and the Deans of Western State College of Law.

Requirements:
A J.D. degree from an ABA-accredited law school, and prior academic-support experience and/or teaching experience. The candidate must have excellent oral and written communication skills with strong attention to detail; excellent writing and editing abilities; sound legal skills and knowledge; a passion for counseling and mentoring students; strong interpersonal skills; strong public-speaking skills; and excellent time-management and organizational skills. The position requires the ability to establish and maintain cooperative working relationships within a diverse environment and the ability to work well as a member of a team and independently. Relevant teaching experience and experience as a practicing attorney are preferred.

Equity, diversity, inclusion, opportunity, and access are of central importance to Western State College of Law. At Western, we are committed to maintaining a community in which each person respects the right of others to live, work, and learn in peace and dignity and to have equal opportunity to realize their full potential as individuals and members of society.

Compensation and Benefits:
Western State College of Law offers a competitive salary within an academic environment based on the candidate’s experience and accomplishments. Western also offers excellent benefits and a 401k plan.

Apply for this Position:
Please submit a CV/resume, statement of interest, one or more sets of sample teaching evaluations, and names and contact information for three references to the Director of Academic Success & Bar Preparation, Lisa Blasser, at [email protected].

Call for Proposals for Blended Learning Conference

Designing the Law Student Experience in Blended Learning

Mitchell Hamline School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota

Thursday, September 24 - Saturday, September 26, 2020

This conference will be an opportunity for administrators, faculty, instructional designers, and student services professionals teaching and working in online and blended learning to share ideas and innovations on building student engagement, community, and opportunities for hands-on experience both inside the virtual classroom and outside of it. This conference will also provide opportunities for participants and presenters to engage in strategic discussions about the role of blended learning in legal education. As the first ABA-accredited law school to receive a variance from the ABA to offer a hybrid program, which has now graduated more than 175 students, we look forward to welcoming you to our campus in St. Paul, Minnesota and sharing ideas about this emerging area of legal education. In conjunction with this conference, Mitchell Hamline School of Law will launch a virtual teaching community for faculty nationwide to share teaching innovations in online and blended learning. All conference participants and presenters will receive access to the Mitchell Hamline School of Law Teaching Community.

Presentation Proposals

Online and blended learning programs have had a significant impact on all aspects of legal education. We encourage presentations on a wide range of topics but have also identified six conference tracks below. Proposals may address online and blended learning in Juris Doctor programs, international legal studies programs, LLM programs, and Master of Laws programs.

1. Best Practices in Curricular Design in Blended Learning Programs

Presentations should focus on the effectiveness of online instruction (synchronous or asynchronous), in-person instruction, or the interplay between both formats and may include best practices from individual course design and teaching methods.

2. Program Design in Blended Learning Education

Presentations should describe strategies and best practices for developing blended programs (as opposed to individual courses) including promoting active learning and student engagement, meeting student needs, and curricular specializations.

3. Experiential Learning in Blended Learning Programs

Presentations should address best practices and innovations in providing experiential learning opportunities to students in blended learning programs.

4. The Complete Law Student Experience in Blended Learning Programs

Presentations should address best practices for engaging students enrolled in blended learning programs in the law student experience including student community building, student services, and student support and advising.

5. Outcomes and Assessment in Blended Learning Programs

Presentations should address best practices and findings in assessing student outcomes in blended learning programs.

6. Market Drivers and External Perspectives on Blended Learning Programs

Presentations should include discussion or evaluation of the market forces creating a demand for blended learning programs and the perspectives of external stakeholders (e.g., alumni, employers) on the efficacy of blended learning programs in legal education.

Presentation Guidelines

We welcome and encourage a variety of session formats, but especially sessions that include small group interaction, demonstrations, or individual attendee participation. Preference will be given to these presentations. Individual proposals and panel or discussion group proposals are welcome. Proposals for panels or discussion groups should be 60 minutes in length including questions. Proposals for individual presentations should be 20 minutes in length including questions. The conference organizers may not be able to accommodate all proposals. Individual proposals will be combined into sessions with other presenters. Presenters will pay their own travel, lodging, and conference attendance expenses.

Publication

Following the conference, presenters will be invited to submit an article summarizing or expanding upon their conference presentations. Mitchell Hamline School of Law will publish these articles in an online volume to advance the discussion of blended learning in legal education. Conference presenters are not required to contribute. Additional information about this publication opportunity will be provided to presenters closer to the conference date.

Required Submission Format for Presentation and Publication Proposals

All proposals should be formatted using the following headings and should be a maximum of 500 words.

1. Title of proposed presentation

2. Presenter(s) name and contact information (including name, title, school, address, email address, and phone number).

Please also identify one person to serve as the primary contact person for the conference organizers.

3. Summary of the proposed presentation

A description of your proposed presentation that outlines the content, format, and anticipated length of the presentation, including its goals and methods. If you plan to include an interactive or demonstration component or other visuals, please describe.

4. Summary of the proposed publication (optional)

A brief description of your proposed publication topic that you would wish to include in Mitchell Hamline’s online journal following the conference. This can be a working description and does not commit you to publishing following the conference.

Please submit presentation and publication proposals to [email protected] by April 1, 2020.

Online Learning Tips

The vast majority of law schools are transitioning to online environments for the foreseeable future.  Online learning presents unique challenges for both faculty and students.  Students must find ways engage in the virtual interactions, which can be difficult when sitting behind a screen.  Natalie Rodriguez from Southwestern Law School sent her students the below email to help them stay engaged and learn efficiently over the next few weeks.

"As we go through this transition together, I would like to provide you with some guidance on how to set yourself up for success with online classes.  Some of you already have experience with online classes, but for some of us, this format is new.  Either way, we will all need to lean into our self-directed learning skills - students and faculty alike.  Luckily, many of the same habits that served you well for traditional classroom learning will also serve you well with online learning. . . .

You are still in school

This is more of a reminder for your friends and family than it is for you.  For those that live with others, they may be tempted to expect more from you since you are not going to campus.  Remind them that you are still in school and have the same academic commitments you previously had. 

Keep a schedule

That you are not physically in a classroom does not change the amount of time it takes to do well in law school.  You will still “attend” just as many class time hours and will still need to devote as many hours outside of class time (per ABA Standards, 2 hours outside of class for every hour in class).  The only difference some of you may see is if you had a long commute.  If that is the case, think back to all those times you thought to yourself, “If I only had more time I could get in more outlining and practice.” Now you do, so use it productively. Time management is still an important skill, whether the class is online or on-campus.

Minimize distractions

With online learning, potential distractions are everywhere – on your computer and even around you.  Some of you have made the choice to not use a laptop during class time.  This new format will require you to use a laptop or some other device to access class lecture.  Using laptops comes with its own set of temptations.  Then there is your personal space.  After all, a pile of dirty dishes is never as tempting as when you have important work to complete.  For internet distractions, consider installing online tools for better attention and focus.  Around your home, set up a space you will use for “attending” class.  Keep it organized and to the extent you can, keep it separate from common areas in the home.  Sitting with a wall directly behind you is less distracting for the other participants.  Remember, professors and peers alike will be able to see what is behind you.  

Stay focused and engaged during class lectures

This can be a bit more challenging because there is more distance between you and your professor.  There is also a lack of eye contact.  Minimizing distractions will help (see above), but you will need to prepare yourself to follow along with the lecture.  Taking breaks between classes to move around also helps.  Use the opportunities presented by your professor to answer questions.  Take class notes just as you would if you were sitting in a classroom.  In other words, treat it as much as possible as if you were in class with the professor in front and surrounded by your classmates.  Practicing active participation and holding yourself accountable for your own success during this time will help you stay on track.

Some tips for using Zoom

Here are some best practice tips for participating in a Zoom class: 

• Consider using good on-line etiquette.  Do not eat during class lecture and be mindful of your attire.  In addition, everyone will be able to see your facial expressions, even those who ordinarily would be sitting behind you in class. 
• Mute your mic when you are not talking.  This will lead to a better audio experience for all participants.
• Pay attention to the chat feature on the right hand side of the screen.  Your professor may pose questions there for you to answer. 
• In case I have not emphasized this enough, everything the camera can capture will be on display for all participants to see.  Make sure they are seeing what you want them to see, or more importantly, not seeing what you would not want anyone to see. 
• In a traditional classroom setting, I can often tell if a student seems confused by material and will make an effort to reach out to the student.  Over Zoom, it is difficult to pick up on these same non-verbal cues.  Make sure you reach out to your professors for help if you need it."

 

(Steven Foster)

Some Thoughts on Law School & COVID-19

I brought my dog Maisey to school today.  I know.  That's not allowed. But sometimes rules are meant to be broken.  I think today was that sort of day.

Today was my final in-person class, at least for several weeks due to COVID-19.  And, because I had so many students prior to class email me that they were not going to make it to class because of COVID-19, I just had to act for those who came.  And for me too, because I was feeling stressed too.  So I did.  I brought Maisey with me to her first law school class ever!

As I walked towards the school, I sort of felt like I had to sneak her in.  But there's no sneaking around when it comes to a large, tail-waving dog.  I was caught right away, and, to my surprise, with smiles everywhere we went. We still hid for a few minutes in my office until it was time for class.  But then we walked into the classroom, in stride together, for Maisey's first college class ever.  Oh the joy, when my students saw Maisey.  The class lit up.

Here's what I learned from today's experience:  

In moments like these, with more than 100 law schools switching to online learning midstream due to COVID-19, the most important things I can do for my students is to care with them, to show them that we will work through this together, to let them know that I will listen to them and learn with them as we move into online teaching, and to acknowledge that I am going to make mistakes along the way (but that's okay because, after all, it's in our mistakes in which the most important lessons are often learned).

After class, I had more students than usual stay late...to talk, to share, and to listen together.  Maisey, on the other hand, just sat quietly on the classroom floor next to us - patient and happy just to be with us.  

As many of us transition into online learning for the remainder of the term, take time to listen to your students, to talk with your colleagues, and to share your worries and concerns because law school is more than just a school; it's a community.  It's our students' community.  And, it's the community in which we are privileged to share in too.  (Scott Johns).

P.S. Here's Maisey in her studious mode on her first day in college (but mostly she slept soundly!).

 

Southwest Consortium of Academic Support Professionals Recap

This past Thursday and Friday, I was in Lubbock for the SWCASP2020, hosted by Cassie Christopher at Texas Tech. Both Cassie and Steven Foster (our editor and founder of SWCASP!) put on a fantastic event.

The morning started with a presentation by Preyal Shah and Meijken Westenskow from UNT Dallas College of Law, 'It Takes a Village: Establishing Working Relationships with Doctrinal Faculty", and that was followed by Zoe Niesel from St. Mary's University School of Law with "Using Academic Support Techniques in the Doctrinal Classroom: One Civil Procedure Professor’s Experience." 

Both presentations gave attendees wonderful and concrete takeaways to implement at their schools. Preyal and Meijken took us through various models of working with doctrinal faculty, and the pros and cons that come along with each one. Zoe took us through her experience implementing academic support practices in her own civil procedure course. I have a literal pages of ideas from both presentations, and can't wait to implement them all.

This was followed by our keynote speaker, Raul Ruiz, from Florida International, discussing his work on spaced learning and bar passage. 

In the afternoon Antonia Miceli, from Saint Louis University School of Law, presented on "Integrating the Multistate Performance Test from Day One"  It gave us great ways to place the MPT in various settings, and she even had us do an exercise where we thought about where we could use practice MPTs, and potential benefits and challenges. 

The conference ended with Jamie Kleppetsch from DePaul University College of Law, with "2L Curriculum Chasm: Creating the Skill Bridge Between 1L and 3L" In true ASP fashion, she gave us a syllabus and materials to start implementing a 2L course of our very own, along with a checklist of things to think about.

You might sense a theme - academic support conferences leave us all with concrete takeaways and lists of things to implement at our home schools. And to that end, I promise the member's only section of the AASE website will be making its debut soon, with many of these materials!

However, that's not the only takeaway. The best part of any of these conferences are the lunches and dinners, and shared conversations in hotels and shuttles, and walking during breaks. Most of us have a department of 1 or 2, maybe 3 or 4 if we are very lucky. But that sometimes makes it hard to find support for ourselves. These conferences help us build a community, and that community sustains us throughout the year.

Which is why it is breaking my heart that regional conferences in Chicago and NY are being canceled. It's necessary, but I will very much miss the community gathering. 

(Melissa Hale)

Fidociary Duties

Just to be clear, law students are not dogs.  Law students are people, full of humanity, volition, self-awareness, and agency.  Dogs, in contrast, are full of caninity, impulsiveness, incomprehension, and opportunism.  If a dog sees you after a one-week absence, she will yelp and leap excitedly, as if witnessing your literal resurrection from the dead.  A law student, on the other hand, will just shrug, or perhaps nod, understanding that class only meets once a week, and that you are not killed and eaten by bears in between meetings. 

Nevertheless, learning to be a better dog owner had helped me learn to be a better law student teacher, too.  This is *not* because law students and dogs are similar.  Law students have never bitten, drooled upon, or shed on me, and they do not think of squirrels as morsel-toys.  No, what has helped has been the realization that I make some of the same mistakes with my puppy that I sometimes make with law students, but with dogs the consequences are more readily noticeable.  Tula provides me with an immediate feedback loop that helps me realize the errors of my ways more quickly:

• Using inconsistent language.  When I am walking my dog and she pulls ahead of me, I invariably find a variety of ways to show my disapproval.  "Tula, come here."  "Tula, back it up!"  "Tula, no pulling."  These all mean essentially the same thing to me, and, in a sense, they mean the same thing to Tula, as well, except from her perspective what they mean is nothing.  Why?  Because when I taught her to walk next to me, I told her to "Heel!".  When I say "Heel!", she knows to walk alongside me.  When I say "Back it up!", I might as well be speaking Orcish, and she merrily ignores me.  Students are not so obvious when they are puzzled by a change in vocabulary, so I might not notice that I have confused them if I switch spontaneously from "meeting of the minds" to "mutual assent" without explanation.  But an overeager German shepherd quickly promotes consistent terminology.
• Failing to spot trouble coming.  A peaceful walk around the neighborhood can become a nerve-jangling melee of barking, yanking, and tangled leash if I do not notice the squirrel that my pooch has fixed her gaze upon or the approaching tween walking her poodle.  Tula means well, but her fervent enthusiasm would lead her into trouble if I had not quickly learned to watch out for temptation.  Law students, too, face hazards to their success -- substantive misunderstandings, time management issues, overconfidence, etc. --- but these dangers can smolder, unaddressed, for weeks or even months before finally leading to very visible, and sometimes catastrophic, misadventures.  Having to learn to control a fanged furry beastie has impressed upon me the importance of spotting and dealing with trouble before it generates an emergency.
• Ignoring personality and mood.  Every dog owner dreams of having the perfectly-behaved pet that responds instantly and consistently to every command, like a fuzzy predictable robot.  I have seen a few of these animals -- they are really scary, like police K-9 dogs, trained through thousands of hours of repetition to such automaticity you can practically hear them barking, "I'll be back!"  The rest of us all have to contend with real dogs.  They mean well, really they do; but if your dog (like mine) is just a quivering bundle of excitement, then you have to accept that you cannot always turn your back on them after commanding them to sit.  And if they are tired, or hungry, or frightened, then you have to adjust your expectations and adjust your guidance accordingly if you want to see the behavior you are used to seeing.  If you don't, then you will see things go awry very quickly.  Law students are not dogs, which have no control over the expressions of their moods or personalities; people, sometimes with very good reasons, can subdue their reactions.  But those reactions matter -- they affect perception, motivation, and intention -- and their effects might show immediately, or might not make themselves clear until much later.  A good teacher will attend to each individual student's personality and mood and adapt their teaching strategies to take them into account.

Dogs are terrible models for law students -- they do not read books, once one of them starts yapping they all have to jump in, and they would probably sleep through every class.  But dog owners might have something useful to teach law professors.

[Bill MacDonald]

Academic Archetypes: The Overconfident Student*

Overconfidence has become a new norm in legal education. More and more students are entering and graduating from law schools with self-perceptions that exceed their proven competencies. We cannot know whether law school attracts overconfidence or breeds it, but studies show that overconfident personality types abound in law schools.[1] Productive overconfidence can yield high rewards through the generation of a “can-do” mindset. This type of benign overconfidence prompts a scholar to submit a paper proposal and commit to presenting at a conference or symposium before completing a substantial draft of the work. This rather common phenomenon allows us to believe, based on past successes or purely aspirational hopes, that the commitment to deliver by a stated deadline will force our hand to keyboard to produce the committed work.

However, it is the malignant overconfidence that has seemingly become pandemic in the law school environment. The overconfident student archetype personifies a counterproductive level of self-assuredness that presents a challenge to law school faculty, those manning academic intervention programs, and the professional development and career services teams. The overconfident student has a distorted self-perception that internalizes affirmation, from any source, and dismisses constructive criticism. If ever forced to reckon with a shortcoming, the overconfident student code shifts it to an endearing quirk.

The risk to students in this archetype is that their overconfidence prevents them from seeing anything inconsistent with their self-perceptions. The overconfident student views success as any score above rock bottom. Because failure and poor performance will be attributed to teacher error or incompetence and to hyper-competitive student peers, low formative grades and below-mean performance will not register as warning signs for potential failure.

We all face overconfidence in the law school environment. And we can all play a role to combat the failure risks that it carries. First, we can and should set degree advising goals for students who exhibit counterproductive overconfidence. From ASP to Career Services to doctrinal office hours, we can identify GPA means for internships or clerkships in the student’s field of interest. We can present statistics that show bar passage results based on LGPA and class quartile ranking, and comparatively identify where the student is trending. We can demonstrate through alumni testimonials or raw data (if collected and maintained) the added difficulty of learning bar tested content through self-study or bar review instead of taking bar subjects while in law school. This type of blunt force mathematical trauma may be the only thing that resonates with the overconfident student type, because it presents facts and raw data that cannot be dismissed as assumption or overcome with misplaced self-assuredness.

(Marsha Griggs)

*Excerpted from Academic Archetypes, a work in progress by Marsha Griggs, Associate Professor, Washburn School of Law.

[1] Jonathan F. Schulz,  and Christian Thoni, Overconfidence and Career Choice, PLoS ONE 11(1): e0145126. doi:10.1371 (2016). 

Mobilizing Passion

The best laid plans are mere dreams without actions.  Recent research emphasizes the component of success.  Raul Ruiz's article noted that Dr. Duckworth and others admit that passion is not as valuable as perseverance for grit.  I understand the sentiment and tend to agree that perseverance is more important than passion.  However, I do think passion can help someone persevere.  The data may not show a correlation, but I talk to 1Ls and bar students about why they chose to attend law school.  The reasons can, and should, provide the foundation for continued perseverance.  While thinking about this topic, I saw an article this week on Success Insider about turning passion into execution.  I encourage everyone to read and pass along the 15 tips in the article to get students to persevere and complete more work in law school and during bar preparation.

You can access the article here.

(Steven Foster)

MPRE Law or MPRE Culture

Every once in awhile I have a "aha" moment.  I stumbled into this one, and I'm not the same because of it.  

As background, a student reached after having failed the MPRE on multiple tries despite having watched commercial bar review lectures, creating personal study tools, and working lots and lots of practice questions.  

I was so impressed with the student's preparatory efforts.  The student had created spectacular blackletter study tools.  The student knew the law backwards and forwards and could retrieve rules in a flash.  And yet, the student missed question after question despite lots of practice in working through and analyzing problems.

That's when it came to me.  

My student had learned the law - cold - but was still missing questions because the student had not learned the culture of how the law was tested.  Based on my student's prior experiences as an attorney, I asked how my student had learned to solve legal problems as an attorney.  My student explained that the key was in learning the culture of how the law applied to client problems.  

Likewise, I suggested that perhaps the key to success on the MPRE lies in learning the legal culture of the MPRE. With this thought in mind, my student focused preparation efforts anew on learning MPRE culture rather than MPRE law.  And guess what?   The student passed the MPRE with flying colors!  

Based on this admittedly anecdotal experience, my sense is that many students do not pass the MPRE because they focus on learning the wrong thing.  They try to learn the law without learning the socio-legal context of how the law applies - the culture of the law.  

With this thought in mind, I now suggest to students that they work through practice problems as armchair legal sociologists to learn the culture of what is being tested. In short, in my opinion, the MPRE doesn't really test the law as much as it tests the legal culture of the law.  (Scott Johns).