Various Other Teaching Methods at Law Schools Apart fromThe Socratic Method

Socratic professors are not the only type of professor (or even most common type of professor) you will be dealing with in law school. Some professors primarily lecture, while others use modern techniques such as problem solving, simulations, or role playing. Many professors use a combination of methods, including some Socratic aspects, while attempting to be less intimidating.

Other professors, while not Socratic, are equally strict in their proscriptions of tardy arrivals and inappropriate classroom demeanor (for example, making noise, talking, chewing gum, etc.). Such professors, at their best, are compulsive with respect to the organization of their lecture presentations, as well as the punctiliousness of their students.


Professional Publications. Inc. Belmont, CA Careful, accurate notes should be taken in their classes, for lectures by this type of fastidious professor are often the most valuable in terms of clarity and comprehensiveness. Their students are rewarded simply for attending class and taking good notes.

Still other professors may not present carefully organized lectures in a note-taking sense, but nevertheless give such a lively and interesting presentation that the class cannot help but be enthralled. Such professors may leap about the class, raising and lowering the intonation of their voices, and illustrating their lectures with loud claps and wild hand movements. These professors are like professional thespians, and they put on quite a show. Class participation in such classes comes naturally and enthusiastically, unlike in the classes of some other professors. Do not mistake the showman professors entertaining classroom behavior for a lack of academic standards, however, or you may be unpleasantly surprised at test time. Prepare for his class just as much as everyone else's.

Other types of professors include the distinguished scholar but not-so-good-teacher, the excellent-student-just-turned-inexperienced professor, and the accomplished practitioner devoting some time to teaching law (often one of the very best types of professors). A good general rule is to treat all professors with respect and to give them all the professional courtesy of preparing for their classes thoroughly. They will appreciate this, and it is to your advantage as well. Also, try not to pester your professors by phone during their off-hours with constant questions; rather, attend their scheduled office hours and present your questions in a clear, articulate, and logically organized fashion after you have made a reasonable effort to ascertain the answers on your own.

Finally, it cannot be stressed enough that you should not be intimidated by your professors. While your professors are lawyers with elite academic credentials and legal abilities far superior to your own (at present), this should not make you feel inadequate, since they have obviously been at it for many more years than you have. In the final analysis, realize that your professors are there to help you learn, and they should be viewed as resources, not enemies.

The first year of law school is the stuff of myths and legends, hyperbole and dramatic portrayals in both books and movies. It is the best of times and the worst of times, that wonderful, harrowing year of intellectual transformation and academic purgatory into which you naively stride with a "skull full of mush" and out of which you emerge (if you survive) "thinking like a lawyer"-obviously the ultimate virtue!

Faced with the daunting myth of the first year, it is not surprising that most law students dread starting law school. They believe that their own Professor Kingsfield, that pedantic tyrant of first-year contracts from The Paper Chase, lurks inside each new classroom they enter. This is simply untrue. The first year is difficult for most students mainly because it presents a new and unknown challenge. By contrast, the curriculum in the second and third years of law school is much harder than that offered in the first year, and the workload is twice as great. The stress and difficulty associated with taking the bar exam far exceeds that associated with the dreaded first-year exams. And appearing before a cantankerous judge with a real client s rights and money-perhaps even his freedom-on the line is clearly a much tougher task than fielding a few questions from any first-year professor. Yet the myth of the first year as some mysterious and unknowable transforming experience persists, to the detriment of many students.

The first year, while not wholly deserving of the mythic stature the media and others seem to have conferred upon it, is nevertheless very important. How well you do in your first-year classes in terms of grades disproportionately affects your ability to get choice summer, and even permanent, law-related jobs. In fact, first-year grades are usually far more important than second- and third-year grades, since your prospective employers often will have made their decisions about you before the latter grades are made available. The trick, then, is to take the first year of law school seriously and realize its importance, but not to be overwhelmed by it. Having a good idea about what to expect before you start will help debunk the first-year myth, eliminate needless anxiety, and reduce stress to a manageable level, allowing you to achieve the best grades you can.

This article begins to debunk the myth by introducing you to the classes you will most likely take during your first year, the types of fellow students you will meet, and the types of professors you can expect. It also includes a section on the numerous study aids that you will encounter during your first year of law school (the supplemental reading materials designed to help you better understand and master the principles of law taught in your substantive courses). This article and the next (on studying for and taking law school exams) contain the first rules and instructions for playing the law school game.

The first rule is that eliminating unpleasant surprises-the kind promoted by the first-year myth-will greatly enhance your performance. You can avoid many of these unpleasant surprises by being prepared when school starts. The following table lists the items that the first-year law student should obtain before the first day of class or shortly thereafter.

By debunking the myth and setting forth fundamental rules and information about first-year classes, fellow students, and professors, this chapter and the next are aimed at making your first year of law school much more like everyone else's second year.