The Lawyering Skills Course is unique in structure, as well as content, compared to most law school courses. Seventy instructors teach the course, class meets every day, the materials and assignments are practice-based, and we do not give any exams. Optimal learning in this class requires students to participate differently than in a standard classroom. Each year, we solicit suggestions from students and visiting faculty about how to get the most out of the course. Here is a summary of those suggestions, loosely organized by heading. The italicized statements are close-to-verbatim student comments. The other comments are our distillations of multiple suggestions.
- BE PREPARED. • Review the chapter, or as much of it as you can, before the start of each week. • Give 100% to your assignments even if you are not planning to practice that particular area of law. • This class requires a lot of time, but it is worth it. • Prepare for negotiations and client interviews because the workshops don't work unless every student is ready. • I got a lot more out of the class when I looked at the materials ahead of time.
- HAVE A PLAN FOR LEARNING. • Understand your own learning style and try to apply it to this course. • Learning isn't passive, so figure out how you are going to get the most out of the class. • The instructors can only do so much, a lot of the learning is up to the student. • This class helped me figure out how I learn and I know that will help me in the future.
- GO TO CLASS. • In the Lawyering Skills Course, learning is doing. How can you "do" if you are not there? • Save your absences for when you really need them. • It is really hard to figure out what is going on if you miss a day during a week. • The assignments do not make sense if you aren't there to hear the instructions.
- ASK QUESTIONS . PARTICIPATE. • Challenge the attorneys—pick their brains! They are an incredible resource for you, not only as teachers, but as professional relationships for the near and far future. • This is a unique opportunity—you have over 70 lawyers at your disposal—take advantage of it. • If something does not seem clear to you, speak up! Chances are that at least one other student is confused as well. When in doubt, ask Ralph or Gretchen. • It helps the instructors if you tell them what you don't understand.
- FOCUS ON DEVELOPING YOUR SKILLS. • The main thing you will learn in this course is how to be a good lawyer. You'll learn that by actually doing the things that lawyers do. • Pay attention to how you are developing your skills and keep practicing. • You can't learn skills just by thinking about them. • Everyone learns differently, be patient with yourself and with others.
- TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR LEARNING. • There are many ways to learn in this course. There are also many people to learn from, including fellow students. Decide what you want or need to know and go get it • If you want to learn something, this is a good place to learn it. If you don't want to learn, don't hold others back. • This is a great place to experience "real life law practice" in the protected environment of a classroom. Nothing bad happens if you make a mistake.
- TREAT THE SIMULATION EXERCISES SERIOUSLY. • If you "learn by doing," a lot of important learning takes place during the simulations. • Get into the simulation exercises and treat them as "real." You'll learn a lot more that way. • Don't goof off or get silly. • Trying something for the first time in a simulation is good because the next time you do this, it will be for a real client and making a mistake then is not a good option.
- KEEP YOUR MATERIALS ORGANIZED. • Come up with a plan right away or you will be overwhelmed by paper. • You will use these materials later in practice, so have a plan for keeping them straight. • The bottom of a locker is not a good filing cabinet.
- BREAK IT UP. • Take advantage of the breaks to talk to the practitioners and other students. • Go to the social hours Wednesdays or Thursdays, where you can talk to everybody away from the law school. It's a good way to connect with the practitioners—and they buy the beer! • Shut your laptop! It's really distracting to other students and to the practitioners. • Check your e-mail and sports scores during the break, if you can't wait until after class.
- GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER. • I have met more people in my class through Lawyering Skills than in any other way in this school. • This is better than first-year small group. • I now have colleagues that I can call in the future. • This is my first chance for professional networking. • I liked cooperating with classmates instead of competing with them.
Return to Student Handbook Front Page
Return to Lawyering Skills Home Page
