Ms. JD Public Interest Summer Scholarship Winner: Judith A. Pond

Editor's Note: Ms. JD is pleased to feature  Judith Pond, winner of Ms. JD's Public Interest Summer Scholarship. Here is her winning essay submission:

I knew before beginning classes that Georgetown Law has one of the country’s largest student enrollments. What I did not realize, however, was how its size would affect my experience. During college, most of my courses enrolled twenty students or fewer; those with larger enrollments divided into smaller sections, ensuring interaction with professors and teaching assistants. In law school, however, my first-year section of 100 students took five of our eight courses en masse, which presented a challenge to me in two ways. First, our professors’ pedagogy is geared toward teaching a large group of students at once, rather than focusing on individual student experiences. Second, developing relationships with professors becomes a difficult proposition.

Professors who teach large groups face a complex task in ensuring that all students are engaged in discussion and comprehend the material. In law school, this challenge becomes more pronounced because students are expected to distill the relevant rules and ideas primarily from the reading assignments, and only secondarily from classroom teaching. In class, professors might call on two or three students for discussion. Everyone else listens to the conversation without being an active participant. Even in classes where several students raise their hands to volunteer, some professors will not deviate from their system of focusing on only a few students each class. After the first few weeks of school, I noticed that many of my classmates read this dynamic as a tacit release from their obligation to learn. Some students routinely skip class, while others use class as a time to browse the Internet or catch up on other assignments. The temptation to cease paying attention is great; after all, students are not held accountable for having done their homework until the final exam.

Best Friends at the Bar

TEACHING LAW STUDENTS TO BE LAWYERS

POSTED ON DECEMBER 2, 2011

Best Friends at the Bar

TEACHING LAWYERING—IS THIS TOO MUCH TO ASK OF YOUR LAW SCHOOL?

Arguendo: Gender and Representation in the Academy

Welcome! I am thrilled to begin 2012 as a Writer-In-Residence for Ms. JD, and I hope that the experiences and observations that will form the substance of this column will stimulate conversations around ideas of race, gender, and power in the legal profession. To wit:

I am a first-year law student. As is typical, all of my classes for the year have been assigned to me. Unfortunately, however, the eye of arbitrary assignment is blind to the realities of (mis)representation in the classroom. In the fall, 3 of my 4 professors were men; in addition, 3 of my 4 professors were white.[1] For another section, all of their 8 professors for the year will be men.

Montessori 1L: First Exams Edition

I have to admit, this isn’t my favorite part of law school so far. My first semester exams are coming up this week. My bookshelf is cluttered with hornbooks, my mind a tangle: res ipsa loquitur, promissory estoppel, maybe I should have taken Latin in high school.

At the same time, I feel pretty lucky. First-semester finals at Yale are different from any other law school. From the outside, the tests don’t look so unique: we aren’t invited to answer questions in interpretive dance or finger paint (though one classmate suggested idea map answers for the professor who covers the chalkboard in indecipherable scribbles each class session). We’ll show up and type furiously for three or five hours, and then we’ll wonder how we did. But it’s the wondering that’s different, because I won’t have to bite my nails worrying about where I’ll end up in the class rankings: there are none. Nor will I fret about how my GPA will look to prospective employers, since I won’t have one. In fact, we won’t get grades at all. The first semester is credit/fail, or, as many upperclassmen have explained, “pass/pass. You will all pass. Your transcript will look identical to everyone else’s.”

Through Feminist Lenses: What I Wish I'd Learned in Crim Law

Twelve weeks into my 1L Criminal Law class, my professor, a smart, down-to-business woman in her fifties, mentioned the following statistic: three-fourths of all men between the ages of 18 and 30 in Washington, DC are incarcerated.

But this was week twelve of a fifteen-week course. By this point, we had already gone through the majority of course material. Moreover, the stat was a way to understand the necessity defense for prison escape cases—not the criminal justice system as a whole.

 The 1L course in criminal law is for many class-privileged and white students—myself included—our first real introduction to the criminal justice system, aside from the possible speeding ticket or traffic violation. We learn the basics of criminal law, from the prosecution (most of the time) and defense (sometimes) sides. Why forget the bigger picture?

Reproductive Rights Law & Justice Courses on the Rise but Only Available at 1 in 5 U.S. Law Schools

This post is written by Mariko Miki, Director of Academic & Professional Programs, Law Students for Reproductive Justice

The debate over reproductive rights –especially abortion rights— continues to dominate the political, legal, and social landscape in the U.S.  At the federal level, Congress recently attempted to defund Planned Parenthood, and abortion and contraceptive coverage under the Affordable Care Act remains embattled. At the state level, between January and July 2011 alone, legislatures in 19 states passed 80 laws restricting abortion access; in no other year between 1985 and 2011 have states enacted so many restrictions. With the 2012 presidential election looming, women’s health will once again become a hot-button issue.

Canada's National Association of Women and the Law releases Gender and the Law Manual

Ms. JD recently published our National Women Law Students' Organization Handbook to rave reviews. The handbook is a guide for women law students who are organizing or leading a NWLSO or NWLSO affiliated women's group on their law school campuses. 

If you found that guide helpful you should also take a look at a guide put out by Canada's National Association of Women and the Law. While there are some cultural differences between legal education in the United States and Canada, the manual makes it clear that American and Canadian women face many of the same issues. 

To be [a lawyer] or not to be [a lawyer]? That [was] the question.

For three years I grappled with this question and after much deliberation I have decided to take on this most exciting and thrilling adventure.

Truth be told—I'm only two weeks into my first year so I can't really say much about the 1L course load other than give you a rudimentary breakdown of subject matter jurisdiction or what constitutes cruel and unusual punishment under the 8th amendment of the United States Constitution. What I can offer is the perspective I’ve gained in the years leading up to my entrance in the legal field.

My legal education (and subsequently yours) will singlehandedly be the most important investment I (you) will ever make. Naturally, the main thing holding me back was the crippling debt. But after years of talking to lawyers, reading umpteen blogs and pondering other career options, eventually, my passion for law justified this hefty price tag. On that note, I’d like to bring attention to the plethora of opportunities available for law students to lessen our financial burden. With the world virtually at our fingertips, be on the lookout for scholarships, fellowships, etc. Organizations such as Ms. JD among others have made these kinds of awards readily available for the motivated and keen mind.

NALP Survey: What Law School Classes are the Most Valuable

“Hands-on learning (skills courses, judicial internships, clinics, etc.) are the most effective preparation for law practice." - NALP survey 

NALP, the association of legal career professionals, recently published their 2010 Survey of Law School Experiential Learning Opportunities and Benefits. The survey of over 900 associates reports on what types of experiential learning opportunities the associates took part in during law school as well as how those learning opportunities benefited them in their legal practice.

In a time when many law firms are calling for law school graduates with practical skills, the survey provides useful data on how student can get the most out of their legal education. Not surprisingly, most associates who participated in legal clinics and externships/field placements found the experiences "very useful." One survey participant remarked, “My clinical experience was by far the most important thing I did in law school to prepare  me to practice. I think that all law students should be required to spend at least one semester in a clinical program.”