Dear Wunnelles,
By now, most of you have arrived at, or surpassed, the first level of legal fluency. Congratulations! As we approach the halfway point of the fall semester, I think some reminders may help you hit your initial target: grades reflective of your high capabilities and hard work.
People who want to excel at something – a sport, public speaking, or trial work for example–often study the methods of those who have succeeded at high levels, then emulate those behaviors. Likewise, doesn’t it make sense to note the methods employed by those who were unable to achieve satisfying levels of accomplishment – and avoid those behavioral characteristics?
For several years, I have met with those few unhappy students who were dissatisfied with their achievement levels. At these meetings – generally soon after the fall semester grades have been posted – I ask the students to acquaint me with their study methods. The results are enlightening. I think you can learn from their mistakes.
Those who write about “how much to study” in law school usually set the mark at about three times the number of hours spent in class. Carrying 14 credits, a student ought to work outside of class in the neighborhood of 42 hours. Here are the self-estimates of about 30 students[1] who were disappointed in their grades:
How many students studied 42 hours or more?......
How many students averaged fewer than 20 hours?......
How many hours did these students average, weekly, outside of class?......
Remember: Studies have proven that students who plan their time, in writing, then stick to their time budgets, achieve higher grades than those who do not.
Suggestion: Plan each week carefully, so that you study at least 42 hours. Consider using the Flex-Trac method recommended in 1000 Days to the Bar, or any other reliable method of assuring yourself that you have taken total control over your time.
How many students attended all their class meetings?......
How many students missed 10 to 20% of their classes?......
About one-third of these students were absent for approximately ___ out of every 10 classes. That means they missed ___ class meetings each week.
Suggestion: Attend every class. You may be interested in the reasons students provided as to why they missed classes. Reasons included:
- “Bad allergies”
- “Fear of not being prepared enough”
- “Personal reasons”
- “Back problems”
- “Bad weather”
Most students are aware that none of these reasons would suffice when trying to justify a missed court appearance to a client or a judge. Practice achieving 100% attendance now.
Where do students who do not meet their own expectations typically study? In the law library? In an office at home? Most do not.
More than X% of the students report studying exclusively at home, and very few of those students have an “office” set up; most study in the bedroom, kitchen or living room, on the floor or couch. Several study in the “common areas” at school, where they can be easily approached and distracted.
On the subject of course summaries (outlines), fewer than X% of the students prepared any before the end of the semester. Of those X%, many outlined for only “some” classes. Between X and X% prepared no outlines or flow charts at all. Many students, about X%, prepared outlines during the last few days or weeks of the semester.
Do the Academic Support Program workshops help? Well, they don’t help if students don’t attend – X% of the students who performed far below their expectations reported attending 1 or none of the approximately 10 presentation opportunities available in the fall semester.
Perhaps the most significant response of students who were surprised by their inability to respond to hypothetical questions in writing under time pressure related to how little they had practiced[2] that skill:
Percent of students answering “many” practice questions...... X%
Percent of students answering 3 to 6 questions over the semester...... X%
Percent of students answering NO questions before final examinations...... X%
Suggestion: Each week, in each subject, practice responding to hypotheticals in writing.
Will your mid-terms or finals include multiple-choice questions? Suggestion: Practice for those as well. How? Visit click on FAQs, then click on the link leading you to study techniques for multiple choice questions … then follow the advice.
Several students who underachieved during their first semester wrote comments that you may find helpful. Here are a few:
- …………………………………………………………
- …………………………………………………………
- …………………………………………………………
Almost to a person, those students who earned disappointing grades during their first semester of law school have told me: “I can’t understand what happened. I knew the material.” When I asked if they practiced doing what they were going to be called upon to do during their finals (resolve sophisticated legal problems based on complicated narratives, in writing, under time pressure), they responded, “No, but I knew the material.”
Does this mean that if you study at your kitchen table, you will certainly end up last in your class rank? Absolutely not. But I suspect that if you follow many or all of the examples above, you may achieve lower than your personal best level.
Fortunately, we are not at the halfway point of the semester yet. Every student has the ability to earn grades that reflect his/her high level of innate ability and hard work, and there is time to reach that objective. Even the most “on-track” students ought to reflect for a while at this point in the semester, to decide if they ought to tinker with their study regimens a bit.
Are you experiencing difficulties?
- For individual support academically, make an appointment to see me, or Associate Director of Academic Support, ______. Of course, your professors invite you to meet with them as well – especially for questions about the subject matter. In the Academic Support office, we specialize in study methods and related topics.
- For one-to-one help with Legal Methods, I urge you to make an appointment with ______our Writing Specialist. Again, your professors are happy to assist you – but Professor _____ can add to what they have to offer. Hint: why not visit your Legal Methods Professor and the Writing Specialist?
- Some students may be experiencing difficulties with finances, relationships, depression, anxiety, health problems, or any number of things that interfere with study strategies and follow-through. Don’t wait: visit with me – perhaps I can help – or I will refer you to the professionals with a super track record of assisting students and their families with difficulties such as these (that’s ______– the direct confidential number is on the bulletin board outside my office).
By the way . . . about those students who did poorly and responded to the surveys . . . They answered those questions about their study approaches when they visited the Academic Support office. In other words, they asked for assistance. Several of them are now practicing law in courtrooms around the country – others are still in school, doing much better than before. Once these students began balancing their lives and approaching law school as if they were preparing for careers as attorneys, they jumped back on the road to success.
Remember – we share goals. The entire law school community is here to help you achieve your personal best grades, develop a deep, rich foundation for the practice of law, and pass the bar examination the first time you take it.
Excel in law school, my friends.
Sincerely,
Dennis J. Tonsing
Dean of Students
Academic Support Program Director
1
[1] The figures presented here are not “scientifically” accurate due to the number of responses, the vagueness of responses, and the subjectivity involved. They do, however, represent my best shot at accuracy, and are emblematic of the oral responses I have received from hundreds of students facing similar difficulties over the past six years.
[2]These calculations do not include the “practice exams” professors handed out. However, if they were not required to take the practice exams given by their professors, many students avoided these opportunities as well.