Could AI make law professors redundant?

Over the last few weeks and months, universities and media outlets have published a stream of material about AI and natural language processing systems. ChatGPT, in particular, appears to have attracted the lion’s share of attention. Universities and media have focused a lot of their intention on how ChatGPT might be used by students for assessment. But what about law professors? Could AI take…

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Excited for your first day of class? It can improve academic performance

Your law students are forming impressions about you from the first moment. Being excited about your first day of class can improve your students' marks. #law #lawschool #legaleducation

The first day of the semester at law school is rapidly approaching for law school in the southern hemisphere.  You’ve spent days (or even weeks) compiling your curriculum, your reading list, and writing assessment tasks.  You might have also started to (re)write your lectures and lesson plans.  But have you thought about your first day in the classroom?  More specifically, have you thought about…

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Are law students paying our 'lazy tax'?

Law teachers, ask yourself 5 questions before your law students pay your 'lazy tax' #auslaw #legaleducation #lawschool #lawstudents

First semester is about to start for law schools in the southern hemisphere.  For many law students, their first day and the first class of law school is the end of a fantastic chapter of hard work. Data from the United States tells us that most students arriving at colleges are ‘non-traditional’ in the sense that they might be older, employed and with dependants.  Reforms to Australian tertiary…

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Are you explaining the 'why' of assessment to students?

Assessment instructions explain what students have to do and when. But are you explaining the 'why' of assessment to students? #lawschool #legaleducation

When we’re writing assessment instructions, we try to be as transparent as possible about what students have to do and when. We know why they are doing the assessment. But do they?  Are you   explaining the ‘why’ of assessment to students? And does it matter? Rules, policies and practice When we’re designing assessments, there is a battery of policies and practices that we have to observe. They…

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Practical steps to teach case note writing

Writing case notes is a common form of assessment in law school. Here are practical steps to teach case note writing. #legaled #lawstudent #lawschool

Writing case notes is a common form of assessment in law school, especially for first-year law students. It exposes them to basic legal research, writing, and thinking skills before moving on to substantive subjects.  More importantly, the preparation of a case note is usually the first taste first-year law students have of reading case law and identifying the ratio. It is also a common piece of…

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Thinking about a paralegal job?

Dear law student. You told me the other day you thinking about a paralegal job. This video might help answer some questions for you ... #lawstudent #paralegal

Dear law student. You told me the other day you were thinking about a paralegal job. It is one of the most common conversations I have with law students. This video of an earlier post might help answer some questions for you … When you’re thinking about a paralegal job, being clear about what you want from the experience can help with identifying where the experience is taking you. It can also…

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Stop telling law students it's OK to fail

This might sound like a strange topic for a post on this blog. You'll know that I am passionate about supporting law students to succeed. So let me be clear - telling law students it's OK to fail is an essential first step in supporting their professional development and promoting a growth mindset. But telling law students it's OK to fail without offering clear and actionable feedback to improve does nothing. In fact, you might even be promoting a fixed mindset in a failing student that they can't do any better. Stop telling law students it's OK to fail. Start saying it's OK to fail and here's how you can improve.

This might sound like a strange topic for a post on this blog. You’ll know that I am passionate about supporting law students to succeed. So let me be clear – telling law students it’s OK to fail is an essential first step in supporting their professional development and promoting a growth mindset. But telling law students it’s OK to fail without offering clear and actionable feedback to improve…

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Four steps for good law school feedback

Effective feedback can illuminate a path to improving performance and promote a growth mindset. Here's four steps for good law school feedback #lawschool #legaleducation #feedback

We know that assessment tasks can show us how effectively a student has adopted and applied their knowledge in a particular course. But law school is a process of ongoing development, not unconnected ‘checkpoints’. Assessment tasks provide opportunities to give students constructive feedback on a diverse range of skills applicable across law school and even into their post-graduation careers. By…

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Academic misconduct at law school

Academic misconduct happens, even at law school. Here are some ideas for designing assessment to tackle academic misconduct at law school #lawschool #legaleducation

Academic misconduct happens. And it happens a lot, even in law school. It has been uncovered at some of the most prestigious educational institutions like Harvard and Yale.  In a 12-year study in the United States with 71,000 college students, more than two-thirds (that’s 48,000) admitted to some type of misconduct. One third admitted to cheating on tests. In Australia, it may be more prevalent…

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Robots make better baby lawyers?

Small advances in legal technology are taking away tasks that new lawyers used to do. But law schools lag behind. Will robots make better baby lawyers? #law #legaleducation #lawschool #technology

Law schools are abuzz with discussions about the opportunities new technologies are offering. If law reflects society, technology will (and should) change the law and how lawyers practise it. But it’s also gradually nibbling away the simpler tasks on which new lawyers cut their teeth. Will robots make better baby lawyers? What types of jobs will law school have to prepare its graduates for? These…

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Making students' work visible

Making students' work visible in the law school classroom opens a range of new opportunities to foster professional skills and provide useful feedback. #lawschool #legaleducation

Law school lectures and seminars are traditionally run the same way.  A figure of authority – ‘the sage on the stage’ – leads the lecture or the discussion.  It’s simple.  And it’s easy to do.  Sometimes it’s also necessary when we need to get a piece of critical information across.  But making students’ work visible in the law school classroom might open a range of new opportunities to…

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Happy holidays from the Mermaid's Purse!

Happy holidays from the Mermaid's Purse! #holidays #2021 #2022 #education

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5 most-read posts of 2021

It has been a big year for the Mermaid's Purse legal education blog. Here are the 5 most-read posts of 2021. #legaleducation #lawschool #lawstudents

The end of the year is an opportunity to look back and reflect. For this blog, it’s an opportunity to reflect on what attracted your attention this year. Legal education continued to grapple with the pandemic. But readers’ preferences suggested an abiding interest in some more perennial issues, including the curriculum, teaching and grading.  Here are the 5 most-read posts of 2021.  1.  The…

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Why use music in your classroom?

Music can be a mnemonic, an aid to recall and an aid to deeper learning. So why not use music in law school? #legaleducation #lawschool #lawstudent

At the start of the semester, one of my favourite jobs is to pick a playlist for the course I’m teaching. Yes, you read that correctly.  A playlist.  Sometimes it’s mostly Motown.  Sometimes it’s 90s pop and RnB.  Last time it was EDM. While they sometimes get a gentle ribbing from my students, the fact there is a theme tune to each lecture has been pretty memorable. Why use music in your…

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Writing Case Briefs

Writing case briefs (or case notes in Australia) is a common form of assessment in law school. Going back to the basics of learning design can help law teachers teach it better. Here's a suggested lesson plan series. #legaleducation #teacher #lawstudents

Writing case briefs (or case notes in Australia) is a common form of assessment in law school, especially with first-year law students. It is a way of exposing them to basic legal research, writing, and thinking skills before moving on to substantive subjects.  More importantly, preparing case briefs is usually the first taste first-year law students have of reading case law and identifying the…

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No dumb questions

How many times have you started a question with, 'Sorry, this is probably a dumb question but ...'? Why do law students apologise for asking questions? And what can we do to encourage confidence? #lawschool #legaleducation

How often have you started a question with, ‘Sorry, this is probably a dumb question, but …’? How many times have you stood in a seminar room and heard the same question directed at you?  There are no dumb questions. Law students are there to learn to be lawyers. They’re not pre-constructed experts. So why do law students apologise for asking questions? And what can we do to encourage confidence,…

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Recording affects lecture attendance, but they are listening

Ever stood at the front of a lecture theatre and thought, 'I wonder where everyone is?' Recording affects lecture attendance, but students are listening. #lawstudents #lawschool #legaleducation

Ever stood at the front of a lecture theatre for your class and thought, ‘I wonder where everyone is?’ As you pull the microphone holder over your head and hit the record button, have you wondered whether it might be about you? Some recent research from an Australian law school suggests that you’re not imagining it. And maybe it isn’t about you. It might be more about the microphone around your…

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