HEA Individual Teaching Development Grant

2012 / 2013

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant

“Learning via traditional academic methods versus learning by observing professional practice”

Allan T. Moore

Lecturer in Law, University of the West of Scotland

External Examiner – University of Westminster, London

External Examiner – Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen

Allan.Moore@uws.ac.uk

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant

• In legal education – undergraduate = highly academic.

• “Whether arising from a desire for social status or respectability within the university or from some other cause, the determined separation of theory from practice has severely limited the scope of modern legal education.” (Cooper, 2002)

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • “…many law schools – especially the so-called “elite” ones –

have abandoned their proper place, by emphasizing abstract theory at the expense of practical scholarship and pedagogy. Many law firms have also abandoned their place, by pursuing profit above all else. While the schools are moving toward pure theory, the firms are moving toward pure commerce, and the middle ground – ethical practice – has been deserted by both.” (Edwards, 1992)

• “Technique without ideals may be a menace, but ideals without technique are a mess; and to turn ideals into effective vision, in matters of law, calls for passing those ideals through a hard-headed screen of effective legal technique.” (Llewellyn, 1944)

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • My TDG project – what does it involve?

– Principles of flexible learning

– Mode and place of learning

– Establishing strengths and weaknesses of learning by observing professional practice compared with learning in a traditional academic setting.

– Third comparison with those who have learned with a combination of both

• Two phases aligned with teaching trimesters

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Phase One Indications

– Indication One • Difficulties with ensuring relevance; But;

• Warrants further discussion on serialistic Vs holistic approaches

• “Holistic learners may sometimes be guilty of not being able to see the trees for the wood. Serialistic learners on the other hand may be far too specific and find it difficult to incorporate their knowledge effectively into a broader understanding.” (Jones & Scully, 1996)

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Phase One Indications (Continued)

– Indication Two

• Engagement Levels

• “When I woke up on a day where I knew it was a project day, I was genuinely looking forward to going to University and anticipating the types of thing we might see and what we might learn. I don’t always feel the same about going in to some lectures. There are some lectures that I would actually rather not come into University for and feel like I have to force myself to get through them. If those other subjects had some other practical element like what we have had on the project that would make a huge difference to how much I would enjoy the course.” (Student Research Subject, 2013)

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Phase One Indications (Continued)

– Indicator Three • Confidence Levels

– Indicator Four • Employability / Career Planning

• Unanimous agreement that leaving practical skills until postgraduate level is too late

• Extreme consequences of simple practical experience cannot be ignored

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Phase Two Indications

– Indication One • Students that took part in practical observations performed

significantly better in summative assessment than those that learned purely by academic methods

• Law of evidence module overall average mark (grade):

– Research Subjects = 69.67% (A) (+15.03%)

– Rest of Cohort = 54.64% (B2)*

– * Only students that submitted assessment were counted (i.e. no student with a zero mark is included in statistics)

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Phase Two Indications

– Indication Two • Observing practice has improved long term recall and

understanding of subject matter.

• Law of evidence average coursework mark (grade):

– Research Subjects = 59.11% (B2) (+2.77%)

– Rest of Cohort = 56.34% (B2)

• Law of evidence average mooting mark (grade):

– Research Subjects = 78.44% (A) (+11.08%)

– Rest of Cohort = 67.36% (B1)

• Law of evidence average exam mark (grade):

– Research Subjects = 65.83% (B1) (+13.13%)

– Rest of Cohort = 52.70% (B2)

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Phase Two Indications

– Indication Three • Improvement is not related to profile of research subjects.

Subjects were carefully selected to ensure that they were not already ‘straight A’ students.

• Research subjects third year performance average mark (grade):

– Law of evidence = 69.67% (A) (+10.86%)

– All other modules = 58.81% (B2)*

– * Figures relate to all trimester one modules. Figures will be adjusted once trimester two module results are available.

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Next Steps

1. Complete final focus group with research subjects from both phases.

2. Compare answers to set questions used by research subjects in phase one (practical phase) with those used by students only in phased two (academic phase) and the same questions revisited by those students that participated in both phases. 75% return rate achieved in phase one, 42% return rate thus far for phase two.

3. Analyse all results and draw final conclusions.

4. Further oral and written dissemination of results.

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Benefits of undertaking a TDG

– Benefits to the Institution • Seen to be active in improving teaching practice = improved reputation

• Potential for collaboration

– Benefits to the project leader(s) • Improve your own teaching practice

• Experience in drafting grant funding applications

• Gaining a research track record

• Gaining a funding track record

• You set your budgets (Teaching buy out!)

– Benefits to both current and future students • Getting students involved aids overall engagement

• Current students learn more effectively

• Future students benefit from improved modules / courses

– Benefits to the entire education sector • Dissemination of results allows other teachers to learn and improve their practice

• Your project may act as a platform for further research in the future

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Acknowledgements • Mrs Valerie Finch (Former subject leader for law)

• Professor Angus McAllister (Former research lead for law)

• Dr Julie Thomson (UWS Innovation and Research Office)

• Mr Ron Livingstone (UWS Head of Business School)

• All of the research subjects and students involved.

• Scottish Court Service and in particular all of the staff at Hamilton and Paisley Sheriff Courts. In particular Patricia Meikeljohn and Graeme White.

• Several of the lawyers present at court who took the time to speak to myself and the research subjects when present in court.

• The Teaching Development Grant team at the Higher Education Academy.

• Without all of the above (and others) this project could not have been carried out.

Disseminating practice and the benefits of undertaking a Teaching Development Grant • Thank you & Questions

• References – Cooper, Byron D.; The Integration of Theory, Doctrine, and Practice in

Legal Education, J. Ass'n Legal Writing Directors, Vol.1 2002

– Edwards, Harry T.; The Growing Disjunction between Legal Education and the Legal Profession, 91 Mich. L. Rev. 34 (1992-1993)

– Llewellyn, Karl; Committee on Curriculum, Assn. Am. L. Schs. Handbook 159, 161, 1944

– Jones, R. & Scully, J.; Hypertext within Legal Education, The Journal of Information Law and Technology (JILT), 1996 (2)

– Comment from anonymous student research subject in focus group session held at University of the West of Scotland on 12th February 2013