Legal Education in an ODEL Institution: Issues, Challenges and Prospects
Francisca Anene
National Open University of Nigeria
ABSTRACT
In this paper, we propose to carry out an assessment of the nature, benefits and challenges of legal education in a Nigerian institution of Open, Distance and E-Learning. We shall begin by examining statutory requirements for legal education, the main bodies regulating tertiary legal education in Nigeria and specific skills relevant to legal practice. We shall also consider the nature of the law programme at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) especially the mode of organisation of students, entry requirements, mode of assessment and challenges encountered in teaching law in an ODEL setting.
Introduction
The study of law is unique because of the professional nature of the course. Unlike most courses of study, a tertiary degree does not automatically qualify a law graduate to practise as a legal practitioner. Instead, an additional course of training at the Law School is required for a candidate to obtain professional certification as a Barrister-at-Law (BL) which then entitles him or her to practise as a legal practitioner (Solicitor and Advocate) in Nigeria. Furthermore, though tertiary institutions are subject to the regulatory powers of the National Universities Commission, every law faculty is also subject to the regulatory powers of the Council of Legal Education which sets standards for legal education in tertiary institutions and ensures that quality standards are upheld in the training of law students. In line with these standards, the institution is expected to mould students to enable them acquire the skills and qualities required of a legal practitioner.
This paper considers the challenges and prospects of Open, Distance, and E-Learning (ODEL) legal education in Nigeria. With particular reference to the School of Law, National Open University of Nigeria, it points out the challenges encountered in the education of law students through pure ODEL and makes suggestions on how to ensure that the School is properly positioned to achieve the goals of qualitative legal education and practice. In the context of this paper, legal education refers to tertiary training of prospective legal practitioners both at the University and the Law School.
1.The law and practice of Legal Education in Nigeria
In Nigeria, legal training commences at the university where a prospective legal practitioner obtains a Bachelor of Laws Degree (LL.B) after 5 years full time study[1]. Thereafter, he is required to undergo further full time training at the Nigerian Law School (the ‘Law School’) for a period of 1 year[2]. Success at the Law School, entitles a candidate to a qualifying certificate issued by the Council of Legal Education and to be called to the Nigerian Bar (if character requirements are met), with the right to practise as a legal practitioner (Barrister and Solicitor) in any part of the country. In effect, successful completion of a university law programme and award of a Bachelor of Laws Degree (LL.B) qualifies a candidate to reference as a ‘law graduate’ and nothing more[3].
1.1 Regulation of Tertiary Legal Education in Nigeria
Tertiary legal education in Nigeria is regulated by two major bodies - the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Council of Legal Education:
a.The National Universities Commission
The NUC was created under the National Universities Commission Act No. 1 1974[4]. Its responsibilities include:
- advising the President and State Governors, through the Minister, on the creation of new universities and other degree-granting institutions in Nigeria;
ii.making recommendations for the establishment of new academic units in existing universities or the approval or disapproval of proposals to establish such academic units;
iii.making such other investigations relating to higher education as it may consider necessary in the national interest;
iv.making such other recommendations to the Federal and State Governments, relating to universities and other degree-awarding institutions as it may consider to be in the national interest; and
v.carrying out such other activities as are conducive to the discharge of its functions under the Act.
In addition to the above responsibilities, the NUC is empowered by Section 10(1) of the Education (National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions) Act[5], to lay down minimum standards for all universities and other institutions of higher learning in Nigeria, including accreditation of their degrees and other academic awards.
b.The Council of Legal Education
The Council of Legal Education (CLE) was established under the Legal Education (Consolidation, etc.) Act 1976. Its main responsibility is the legal education of persons seeking to be members of the legal profession[6]. In order to meet this responsibility, especially since the quality of university education has a direct effect on the quality of candidates for legal education at the Law School, the CLE also exercises the power of accreditation under the Legal Education Act 1962[7]. In addition, the CLE also carries out periodic inspection visits to ensure that law faculties maintain minimum education standards[8].
To be accredited by the CLE, a university law faculty must meet the minimum academic standards of the NUC and the CLE guidelines as to the minimum library requirements, status of law lecturers, student teacher ratio, core subjects, lecture periods and physical/infrastructural facilities of the Law Faculty. Where CLE accreditation of a law faculty is refused, law students who graduate from that University, though they may be awarded LL.B Degrees, will be unable to proceed for further education at the Law School or practise as legal practitioners in Nigeria
In Nigeria, as in most other jurisdiction, the legal profession is a conservative and highly regulated profession. To this end, candidates for legal education are subjected to rigorous tests and conditions from the point of admission in the university until they are ultimately called to the Nigerian Bar. These conditions are applicable to all law students regardless of their mode of study i.e. ODL or conventional. Hence, accreditation requirements are the same for all institutions.
1.2.Legal Education and Character Requirements for Legal Practice in Nigeria
To qualify as a legal practitioner, candidates are required to meet some requirements which are not necessarily academic in nature.
Pursuant to Section 4(1)(c) of the Legal Practitioners Act[9], requirements for enrolment as a legal practitioner in Nigeria include Nigerian citizenship, production of a qualifying certificate issued by the Council of Legal Education and satisfaction of the Body of Benchers[10] that the candidate is of ‘good character’. To be adjudged of good character, a candidate is screened and found ‘fit and proper’ to be called to the Nigerian Bar. Though this relates to moral character and integrity[11] - somewhat intangible and non-academic qualities, the requirement to be ‘fit and proper’ is so important that a candidate may possess the requisite university degree and Law School qualifying certificate and still be refused the call to the Bar if he is not found to be fit and proper.
Moulding of candidates for call to the Nigerian Bar commences in the University. Prior to admission to the Law School, requisite ‘character qualities’ are not necessarily taught in the academic curriculum but are inculcated through interaction and practical training. In practice, character screening is first done in the University. Hence, part of the requirements for admission into the Law School is positive reference from the Dean of the Faculty of Law as to the character of the candidate. Students who have been rusticated or convicted for criminal offences are usually refused admission at the Law School for this reason.
2.The Law Programme at the National Open University of Nigeria
2.1Nature of Study in the National Open University of Nigeria
The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is the only specialist provider of open and distance education in Nigeria. It is also the largest tertiary institution in terms of student population[12]. The main focus of the institution being to educate the Nigerian workforce, NOUN has over 50 courses of study from certificate to post graduate level[13]. At present, there are 40 study centres situated at various locations in Nigeria. The Study centre is designed as the hub of activity in each zone with study materials available for pick up and interactions made possible between students and facilitators, tutors and student counsellors who can offer study support as required.
In line with recent advances in distance education, the emphasis in NOUN is on e-learning. With the use of the iLMS platform, admission and course registration are initiated online. Upon completion of registration, students are entitled to study materials which they may collect from their study centres or download from the school website. Course materials are written by seasoned experts who may either be academic staff of NOUN or other institutions[14]. Before any course material is certified suitable for use by students, it is sent to another expert for editing. After it is edited and the editor finds the contents suitable it is then made available to students through the aforementioned channels.
Under the ODEL system, teacher-student interaction is minimised and students are expected to interact with their study centre directors and counsellors. Lectures (called ‘facilitation’) are carried out by third party facilitators who are required to explain the topics covered in their course materials to students. Attendance at facilitation sessions is not compulsory and students are expected to form the habit of independent study.
With a student population of about 5000, the School of Law has the highest law student population for any Nigerian university. At present, only Bachelor of Laws Degree and Post-Graduate Diploma in Legislative Drafting are available in NOUN. Also, no law degrees have been awarded as the most senior students are currently in their penultimate year (400 Level).
2.2Assessment in NOUN
Assessment in NOUN is of two types:
a. Four (4) tutor marked assignments (e-TMAs) which are used for mid-term assessment. These carry 30% of the total marks awarded per course. Students are required to complete their TMAs online through their personal portals[15].
b.E-examinations which carry 70% of total marks awarded per course. E-exams consist of pre-formatted computer based examinations which students are required to take at designated examination centres[16]. All e-examination questions are multiple choice and fill in the blank questions[17]
The main advantage of e-assessment in NOUN is that it dispenses with the need for marking of examination scripts and reduces incidences of cheating during examinations. This is largely due to the e-examination software which automatically does the grading immediately after the examination. The software also mixes examination questions so that different examination questions are displayed to students.
With the large student population and multiplicity of examination centres for NOUN students, marking and invigilation of examinations would ordinarily pose a problem in terms of cost and manpower. However, these are reduced to the minimum with the above features of the e-examination software.
2.3Studying Law in NOUN: The Reality
The NOUN law programme has proven to be very popular for many reasons. In line with the motto of NOUN which is ‘Work and Learn’, most registered law students are employed adults who wish to take advantage of the flexibility of study available to students in the ODEL setting. Studying in NOUN dispenses with the requirement to attend lectures and/or meet attendance thresholds which obtain in conventional universities.
Another attractive feature of the study of law in an ODEL setting is the ability of students to work at their own pace. Students are allowed the flexibility to register for only those courses that they can afford and/or study for at a time. As a result, law students need not complete studies in 5 years as obtains in conventional universities but may take longer depending on time available for learning.
Affordability is another attractive attribute of tertiary study in NOUN. Students are allowed to pay per course. Accordingly, a student may only pay for the courses he or she intends to register for at a time and may defer payment for other courses as required.
The above advantages notwithstanding, ODEL students face some challenges occasioned by the unique nature of study. In the first instance, owing to the emphasis on e-learning, computer literacy is a necessity if a student wishes to excel in NOUN. Unfortunately, a large number of NOUN students are not very conversant with the use of the computer. As a result, e-registration and e-examinations pose a problem for such students and incidences of wrong registration are recorded.
Furthermore, e-learning depends to a large extent on internet access. Internet penetration is still a major issue especially in the rural parts of the Nigeria. Current internet penetration rate in Nigeria is estimated at 28.9%[18]. However, internet service is mostly obtainable in metropolitan areas as many areas in Nigeria remain unserved or underserved. Regardless of their location, many students cannot afford personal internet access and may have to depend on cybercafés who also experience major connection challenges from time to time. Such students are also restricted in their access because they can only use cybercafés during working hours.
Insufficient bandwidth is another major challenge to effective e-learning. This is further exacerbated by multiple use especially during registration, e-TMA and examination periods which sometimes cause the system to shut down or malfunction. This has a direct effect on the school calendar as registration and e-TMAs are known to go on longer than planned to accommodate students who may be disadvantaged as a result of ICT challenges[19].
Multiple choice e-assessment poses another problem as it precludes in-depth assessment and reduces students’ ability to solve problems under pressure or proffer solutions on the spot. Whilst e-assessment has the advantage of helping students develop speed, they are not suited for teaching the application of theoretical knowledge to real life situations which the law programme requires. Also, students are unable to learn to put their opinions down in coherent and organised form required for legal writing. Students tend to learn in terms of correct or incorrect answers with multiple choice questions. This negates the reality of real life legal situations where there may be no definite course of action but a call to consider all the options and take a position which one must defend. The reality with multiple choice questions is that, even if guesswork is employed, students are bound to get some questions right though they may not have acquired the knowledge the course seeks to pass on.
Perhaps the most significant challenge for law students is the unsuitability of pure e-learning/e-assessment for the transfer of requisite skills for effective legal practice. Research shows that effective legal practice is influenced such as skills as intellectual/cognitive skills (analysis, creativity, problem solving), research skills, communication skills (advocacy, writing and speaking), conflict resolution skills and good character (diligence, integrity, passion)[20]. The reality is that these skills are more easily transferred through face-to-face interaction which does not obtain under pure e-learning. For instance, students cannot be taught how to be ‘fit and proper’ through the pages of course materials or e-examinations. To a large extent, skills like organisation, advocacy and character formation are transferred through communication and interaction which is not readily available to law students in the ODEL setting. Also, multiple choice questions and the lack of written assessments mean that students are unable to learn important legal writing skills or apply theoretical knowledge to real life issues. Students also find it difficult to think on the spot without options being given to them.
Though study centres were envisioned as a means of providing some form of staff-student interaction, the reality is that they are ill equipped for the learning and skills transfer required for law students. This is because of the population of students to which study centre staff are expected to cater and the fact that most study centres do not have staff with any form of legal training on ground. As a result, unique issues such as comportment, character requirements and communication are not given the attention required for proper training of law students. This is further compounded by the fact that all academic staff are located at the NOUN headquarters in Lagos. Whilst law students in Lagos may have some access to academic staff, those in other parts of the country are severely disadvantaged.
It may be argued that law students have access to their facilitators (who are all lawyers) and can learn from them. However, facilitation only takes place on weekends and is not compulsory. Furthermore, the School operates a ‘no-facilitation’ policy for courses where students in a particular study centre are less than 50. Owing to the time required for teaching and facilitation, little attention is paid to the transfer of ‘intangible skills’.
3.A Way Forward for Legal Education in NOUN
The above challenges notwithstanding, ODEL has come to stay. Most conventional institutions of learning now offer their courses of study through distance education. For such institutions in Nigeria, education is offered through bi-modal systems i.e. some face to face teaching as well as distance education.