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The Critical Role of Retrieval Practice in Long-Term Retention
No full textLearning is usually thought to occur during episodes of studying, whereas retrieval of information on testing simply serves to assess what was learned. We review research that contradicts this traditional view by demonstrating that retrieval practice is actually a powerful mnemonic enhancer, often producing large gains in long-term retention relative to repeated studying. Retrieval practice is often effective even without feedback (i.e. giving the correct answer), but feedback enhances the benefits of testing. In addition, retrieval practice promotes the acquisition of knowledge that can be flexibly retrieved and transferred to different contexts. The power of retrieval practice in consolidating memories has important implications for both the study of memory and its application to educational practice
Is Affirmative Action Responsible for the Achievement Gap Between Black and White Law Students? A Correction, a Lesson, and an Update
No full textThis essay revisits an Essay I published in the Northwestern Law Review in 2007 on affirmative action and its potentially deleterious effects on black law students. The original 2007 essay found no evidence of a \u27mismatch\u27 effect, where black students are disadvantaged by matriculating to schools where they are outmatched by their fellow students. It also found evidence of an antimismatch effect that suggested that minority students were well-served by affirmative action policies. In the current essay, I correct some unreplicated findings and discuss the substantive impact of these changes. I find no evidence of either a mismatch or an antimismatch effect after these corrections. I also offer some suggestions of best practices to minimize future errors such as mine
Entering Law Students’ Conceptions of an Ethical Professional Identity and the Role of the Lawyer in Society
No full textKegan’s theory of lifespan identity development framed a pilot study of law students’ understanding of professionalism, part of a broader study of ethical professional identity. Four raters trained in Kegan’s stage criteria could reliably assess one of three developmental stages, based on coding essays on professionalism. Correlations of stage scores with moral judgment scores, service learning, and work experience supported the validity of the method. Ethical professional identity assessment can be integrated with courses or mentoring programs to provide students with developmental feedback. This method can also be used to assess law school outcomes with respect to ethical professional identity by comparing growth from matriculation to graduation
Shaping the Tributary: The Why, What, and How of Pipeline Programs to Increase Diversity in Legal Education and the Legal Profession
No full textA century of legalized racism, followed by decades of institutionalized racism, has resulted in the under representation of minorities, particularly African-Americans, in the legal profession. Circumstance has made it challenging for these individuals to succeed. And yet, some have done so against the odds. Recognition of the need to open the door, give a chance, and provide opportunities that can make a difference highlight the value of institutional efforts to shape the tributary or build the pipeline
Yes We Can, Pass the Bar. University of the District of Columbia, David A. Clarke School of Law Bar Passage Initiatives and Bar Pass Rates—From the Titanic to the Queen Mary!
No full textThis study provides an empirical analysis of the School of Law\u27s bar passage data. Many law schools have created bar support programs—in addition to academic support programs—to improve their bar passage rates. Few studies, however, have assessed their program\u27s using a statistical analysis. One recent study of the University of Richmond\u27s bar support program found that its bar program had improved the University of Richmond\u27s bar passage rate and the increase in passage was statistically significant. The study also found that the program had a dramatic improvement for those students who were in the bottom half of the graduating class. The study found an 8.5% improvement in the bar passage rate for students as a whole after the bar program was implemented.
The Richmond study provides the empirical model for our review, although some of the programmatic aspects are different. The UDC-DCSL study of the improvement in bar passage rates is the first to use a logistical regression analysis for all variables. Like the Richmond study, our results reveal that our bar support programs have had a statistically significant impact on bar passage programs. For the entire study period, there was a 14.7% difference between bar passage rates on the first attempt (first time takers) for those who participated in the bar review class versus those who did not participate.
The results of the logistical regression analysis indicate that law schools\u27 bar preparation programs can contribute significantly to improvement in the overall bar passage rate. This paper describes the steps taken at UDC-DCSL to improve its bar passage rate and provides an analysis of the factors which have proven to be effective in reaching that goal. (11–12
A Changing Eye for Talent
No full textLegal employers and law schools alike have long judged applicants by measures, like grades and test scores, which ostensibly gauge cognitive ability. In so doing, they have de-emphasized other skills, including problem-solving, leadership, and consensus-building, that a growing body of evidence—and many leaders in the legal field— suggest are equally important in becoming a successful lawyer. This article examine ways that employers can rethink how they recognize, recruit, retain—and ultimately define—top legal talent
Characteristics of Academic Advising That Contribute to Racial and Ethnic Minority Student Success at Predominantly White Institutions
No full textRacial and ethnic minority student departure continues to be a major concern for higher education researchers, policy makers, and practitioners. We explore the role that academic advisors play in facilitating success among students of color at predominantly White institutions that have demonstrated effectiveness at generating ethnic minority success. Three themes emerged from the findings and underscore the characteristics of academic advising that contribute to that success. First, participants noted the importance of advisors who humanized the practice of academic advising. Second, they highlighted the impact of those who adopted a multifaceted approach to advising. Finally, participants emphasized the importance of proactive academic advising. Implications for academic advising practices are discussed
Hope, Again: Hope Theory in Bar Exam Preparation
No full textEven law students who begin their studies with high hope or who learned hopeful strategies during law school may find their bright futures have dimmed by graduation. This article addresses hope in law students in their final term of study and in their initial bar exam preparation after graduation. As students prepare to leave law school, hope often needs renewal, goals need rephrasing, and potential graduates may need an extreme mental makeover. Law faculty have a role to play in this final chapter, just as they did in the first semester of law school
The Last Taboo: Breaking Law Students with Mental Illnesses and Disabilities out of the Stigma Straitjacket
No full textThe number of people with illnesses, disorders, and disabilities in our society is huge. More than fifty million Americans are disabled, at least to some degree. That equates to nearly twenty percent of all Americans. Even more Americans, although not qualified as persons with a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act ( ADA ), suffer from a temporary or periodic disability, disorder, or illness during some time in their lives. Although physical disabilities and illnesses usually come to mind when one thinks about legal protections and the availability of employment or educational opportunities, mental illnesses, disorders, and disabilities are just as prevalent in our society. Many people suffer from episodic or periodic mental illnesses or disorders during their lives.
Although professional treatment, counseling, and medication greatly mitigate the symptoms and adverse affects of many mental illnesses, disorders, and disabilities, people who suffer from them continue to be stigmatized and discriminated against. As a result, they often suffer significant hurdles to employment and educational opportunities.
Ironically, the very people who are in the best position to increase the number of lawyers who intimately understand the discrimination and health care laws in our society impose some of the highest hurdles to employment and educational opportunities. Lawyers stigmatize and often decline to hire other lawyers unless they have a clean mental health history-free of disabilities, disorders, and illnesses.
Bar examiners inquire about prospective law students\u27 mental health and refuse to allow them to practice law based on their past mental health history. At times, the bar only offers conditional admission to law students with current or past mental health issues. As a result, law students who mentally suffer during law school play a game of caution. They decline needed treatment and counseling, fearful of repercussions from fellow law students, faculty, and administrators if they disclose their problems.
Most of all, law students who mentally suffer during law school fear questions asked on bar admission character and fitness questionnaires, which may prevent them from pursuing their chosen profession. Stigmatization, hurdles, and fear occur in law schools and within the legal profession, despite the call from the American Bar Association ( ABA ) to increase the number of lawyers with disabilities within its membership. The ABA calls for the elimination of bias and the enhancement of diversity in the organization, the legal profession, and the justice system. This article is about the hurdles bar examiners impose on prospective lawyers with mental health issues, causing law students to hide their problems. It begins by examining the types of mental illnesses or disorders suffered by law students and the adverse affect upon the legal profession when future lawyers do not seek help for their mental problems. It also discusses the legal protections afforded to law students suffering from mental disorders and illnesses under the ADA and the dilemma they face in choosing whether to disclose their problems to law schools, bar examiners, and character and fitness committees of bar associations. It discusses how law schools and the bar examiners often discourage law students from seeking the help that they need from mental health professionals. Finally, this article discusses recent amendments to the ADA, broadening the reach of its protection to people with both permanent and periodic mental illnesses and disorders
Learning by Doing: An Experience with Outcomes Assessment
No full textAn emphasis on assessment and outcomes measures is a drum beat that is growing louder in American legal education. Prompted initially by the demands of regional university accreditation bodies, the attention paid to outcomes assessment is now growing with the forecast that the ABA will revise its accreditation standards to incorporate outcomes measures. For the past three years, the University of Pittsburgh School of Law has been developing a system for assessing the learning outcomes of its students. By describing our experience here at Pitt Law, with both its high and low points, we hope to suggest some helpful pointers for other law schools as they work to develop systems for assessing whether they are accomplishing institutional goals related to student learning