{"id":1011,"date":"2015-08-11T11:59:51","date_gmt":"2015-08-11T15:59:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/?p=1011"},"modified":"2015-08-11T11:59:51","modified_gmt":"2015-08-11T15:59:51","slug":"improving-first-year-doctrinal-classes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2015\/08\/11\/improving-first-year-doctrinal-classes\/","title":{"rendered":"Improving First-Year Doctrinal Classes"},"content":{"rendered":"

by E. Scott Fruehwald, Contributing Editor at Legal Skills Prof Blog<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

While legal scholars have written a great deal on improving legal education by adding experiential classes to the second and third years of law school, it is equally as important that law professors make changes in how they teach first-year doctrinal classes. The Langdellian approach to teaching was developed in the nineteenth century, and we have learned a great deal about effective teaching since then.<\/a>\u00a0Moreover, law students today are vastly different than the ones Langdell faced in his classroom.<\/p>\n

First, professors should not abandon the Socratic Method<\/strong>; it remains a very effective method of teaching students doctrine and \u201chow to think like a lawyer.\u201d However, professors should add active teaching approaches to their repertoire. One active approach is to sometimes use a flipped classroom, in which students learn the material from lectures posted online, and class time is devoted to doing problem solving exercises.<\/p>\n

Professors need to add problem solving exercises<\/a><\/strong> to all first-year classes. Students need to not only know the law; they must be able to apply the law to facts. I would suggest that professors give a major problem at the end of each unit, with a problem at least once a week. Alternatives could include several short problems in each class, or short analytical papers every couple of weeks. Professors should also do mini skills exercises<\/strong> in class to develop techniques like rule-based reasoning (deductive reasoning), analogical reasoning, distinguishing cases, synthesis, and policy-based reasoning. For example, studies have shown that second- and third-year students are generally weak at synthesizing cases.\u00a0Legal publishers have recently started publishing textbooks that law professors can use as sources for exercises. Also, professors could have students identify the types of reasoning a judge is using when they discuss cases in class.<\/p>\n

Professors should assign short drafting assignments <\/strong>in first-year classes. For example, students could draft complaints, written discovery, and other pleadings in Civil Procedure. Similarly, students could write contract clauses in Contracts. Students will understand contracts principles much better if they have experience drafting contracts clauses.<\/p>\n

First-year professors also need to help law students develop their metacognitive skills<\/strong>\u2014thinking about thinking. Professors can use metacognitive questions to help students be conscious about how they reason, think about their problem solving strategies, and even improve their study habits. Examples of metacognitive questions include: 1) how do you read a case?, 2) is your case reading method the most effective it can be?, 3) will the strategy you used to solve this problem work for the other problem?, and 4) will the study methods you used in undergraduate school be effective in law school?.<\/p>\n

Finally, law students need detailed formative assessment<\/strong>. Students need to know as soon as possible what they are doing wrong so that they don\u2019t continue the same mistakes. Also, studies have shown that students retain more with frequent formative assessment. Such assessment can include pop quizzes, short papers, problem solving exercises, and self-formative assessment from texts.<\/p>\n

Here is suggestion for teaching a first-year torts class: Have the students read several cases on false imprisonment. Before class, they should synthesize a test for false imprisonment in writing. In class, professors should help the students learn false-imprisonment doctrine, using the Socratic Method or lecture. Then, work through several problems in class. Finally, have the students do a short paper in which they must solve a false-imprisonment problem.<\/p>\n

Education researchers have uncovered a new world of effective educational approaches. First-year professors need to use these techniques to better prepare students for the second and third years of law school and to turn out better lawyers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by E. Scott Fruehwald, Contributing Editor at Legal Skills Prof Blog While legal scholars have written a great deal on improving legal education by adding experiential classes to the second and third years of law school, it is equally as … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5482,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4CR8M-gj","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1200,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2017\/03\/16\/using-case-study-method-law\/","url_meta":{"origin":1011,"position":0},"title":"Why and How: Using the Case Study Method in the Law Classroom","author":"Lisa Brem","date":"March 16, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Photo by: Brooks Kraft Post by: Jackie Kim and Lisa Brem Why should legal educators use case studies and other experiential teaching methods, such as role plays and simulations, in their classes?\u00a0 Hasn\u2019t the Langdell method served legal education well these last 140 years?\u00a0 Certainly creating and using experiential materials\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"person walking by langdell","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2017\/03\/2237550-R6-019-8-1024x659.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2017\/03\/2237550-R6-019-8-1024x659.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2017\/03\/2237550-R6-019-8-1024x659.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":750,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2014\/04\/15\/law-professors-still-stuck-in-the-same-old-classroom\/","url_meta":{"origin":1011,"position":1},"title":"Law Professors: Still Stuck in the Same Old Classroom?","author":"Lisa Brem","date":"April 15, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Last summer and fall, the Case Studies Program at Harvard Law School set out to learn more about what kinds of teaching methods and materials law school professors used. We sent out surveys to approximately 1,000 faculty and deans at law schools throughout the country and received about 290 responses.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Case Study Program Blog Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Case Study Program Blog Posts","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/category\/case-study-program-blog-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2014\/04\/methods.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2014\/04\/methods.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2014\/04\/methods.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2014\/04\/methods.png?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2014\/04\/methods.png?resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":831,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2014\/07\/22\/the-problem-solving-workshop-a-video-introduction\/","url_meta":{"origin":1011,"position":2},"title":"The Problem Solving Workshop: A Video Introduction","author":"Elizabeth Moroney","date":"July 22, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"by Lisa Brem, Case Studies Program Manager The Problem Solving Workshop (PSW)\u2014a mandatory first-year course at Harvard Law School\u2014has been successfully integrated into the curriculum for five years. The course is a major departure from the rest of the first-year doctrinal courses, focusing instead on hands-on participation from students and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Problem Solving Workshop Blog Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Problem Solving Workshop Blog Posts","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/category\/problem-solving-workshop-blog-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/cUTXCD4A968\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":58,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2012\/12\/20\/information-law-and-policy-advanced-problem-solving-workshop\/","url_meta":{"origin":1011,"position":3},"title":"Information Law and Policy: Advanced Problem Solving Workshop","author":"Lisa Brem","date":"December 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"HLS Visiting Professor Susan Crawford taught the Information Law and Policy: Advanced Problem Solving Workshop this fall at HLS. The course combines case studies with mini lectures, classroom exercises and guest speakers to provide an interactive, participant centered experience for students. The case studies were developed in last spring's Advanced\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Problem Solving Workshop Blog Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Problem Solving Workshop Blog Posts","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/category\/problem-solving-workshop-blog-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2012\/12\/10.16.12Crawfrd0771-300x200.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":479,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2013\/07\/09\/summer-reading-legal-educations-9-big-ideas-part-1\/","url_meta":{"origin":1011,"position":4},"title":"Summer Reading: Legal Education\u2019s 9 Big Ideas, Part 1","author":"Elizabeth Moroney","date":"July 9, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Taking Cues from Science and Technology Last week\u2019s blog post\u00a0made it seem as if the end of traditional legal education is near.\u00a0 But, as the saying goes, every ending is a new beginning. Scholars and practitioners are proposing solutions to the crisis in legal education that draw on the successes\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Legal News and Debate"","block_context":{"text":"Legal News and Debate","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/category\/legal-news-and-debate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2013\/06\/800px-EPA_GULF_BREEZE_LABORATORY_CHEMISTRY_LAB._THE_CHEMIST_IS_TESTING_WATER_SAMPLES_FOR_PESTICIDES_-_NARA_-_546277-500x338.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1099,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/2016\/04\/05\/the-classroom-experience-prosecutorial-discretion-in-charging-and-plea-bargaining-the-aaron-swartz-case-a-and-the-battle-for-unocal-case-studies\/","url_meta":{"origin":1011,"position":5},"title":"The Classroom Experience: Prosecutorial Discretion in Charging and Plea Bargaining: The Aaron Swartz Case (A) and The Battle for Unocal Case Studies","author":"Alec Villalpando","date":"April 5, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Post by Logan Sawyer, Visiting Associate Professor of Law, Harvard Law School \u201cThat class was awesome,\u201d and \u201cYou should definitely do that again next year,\u201d were the first things I heard from students after the two case studies I taught in two different classes, at two different institutions.\u00a0The classes were\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2016\/03\/Singer-4-1024x681.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2016\/03\/Singer-4-1024x681.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/files\/2016\/03\/Singer-4-1024x681.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5482"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1011"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1012,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1011\/revisions\/1012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/hlscasestudies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}