As more ABA-approved law programs shift to online education models, law students encounter a different type of legal education than their predecessors. Currently, there are eighteen ABA-approved fully online JD programs in the United States, and I suspect this number will increase as post-COVID Zoom-based higher education systems are becoming increasingly popular nationwide.
Students who enroll in these online programs are experiencing law school in a completely different setting than before, and with that change comes a difference in program expectations and realities. Most law school prep books and prep programs are set up to prepare incoming One L students for an in-person program. However, many students, myself included, are now confronted with a different reality in law school.
This list is designed to give students a better idea of how an online program will likely differ from an in-person program.
The Socratic method
Law school is known for its brutal use of the Socratic method. Television programs often portray this educational technique as a tool to intimidate students and ensure they are prepared for class. In How to Get Away with Murder, Professor Keating (Viola Davis) employs this method when she calls on first-year law student Wes Gibbins (Alfred Enoch) and publicly chastises him for not knowing the definition of “Mens Rea,” which he would have known had he prepared for the first day of class.
Similarly, in Legally Blonde, Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) sits in the front row of a class only to be informed that she should “beware” of such a choice, and another student is berated over whether he would risk his life on the accuracy of his answer.
While I don’t mean to suggest that television accurately portrays the education of most in-person law programs, the fact remains that many professors employ this technique of deep questioning on their students. This technique is widely covered in most books that attempt to introduce incoming law students to the realities of the next three years of their lives.
The question then becomes, how does the Socratic method work (or not) in an online program?
If the program is synchronous (i.e. lectures are given live on a video call with students), this method works much the same way: a professor cold calls on a student, and that student gets questioned. There is likely an argument to be made that this course of questioning is less stressful than it would be in person (i.e. there is something more intimidating about being stared at in person than being stared at online). Possible glitches can make it challenging to employ cold calling in an online setting, such as internet glitches or someone running to the bathroom but being called on anyway. Professors might instead pose a question and have all students respond in the chat. This method expands socratic teaching by allowing professors to focus on all students' engagement instead of questioning one student. The result is thus still slightly different, yet still Socratic at its core.
That said, asynchronous classes have a more difficult time applying the method.
In an asynchronous class, where students watch videos and engage with the material without professor interaction, the assumption might be that the Socratic method is invalid or disregarded for online learners. This, however, is not the reality of my asynchronous courses. In other words, my professors got creative.
In order to continue offering the level of engagement and probe-based questioning that law schools employ in person, my program created graded responsive video quizzes. In a recorded video lecture, the professor asked a question, and online students watching the video were required to input an answer before the lecture proceeded. These assignments are graded, and thus, the pressure of getting an accurate answer is still broadly applicable; the only difference is you don't have to give that correct answer in a room full of other students and feel shame when you get the answer wrong.
An online program has a form of the Socratic method; it is just modified to fit an online setting. Incoming students should still be prepared to be questioned, even in an asynchronous online program.
Glitches
As mentioned in the last section, an online program will have glitches. Not only the typical glitches that come with any type of computer-based learning (internet crashing, documents disappearing into the unsaved ether, having your spouse accidentally walk behind the camera [hopefully with pants on], etc.) but also more significant systemic glitches.
Online JD programs are in their infancy. While the professors might have extensive experience teaching, they might not have extensive experience teaching online. The quizzes might be set up incorrectly, and an attempt to get students to work together might fail. A professor who has taught the same course for over ten years will have narrowed down which assignments, tasks, or questions work and which ones don't. However, if the class is in its first few years, there isn’t a buffer where other students find the errors. We are the buffer.
Camera On
Law school is a professional degree program, and while I knew this, I admit I also thought I could perhaps take a class from bed or in my pajamas. This wasn't the reality. My classes and any live sessions require my camera to be on at all times. Be advised.
Busy work
In a typical in-person JD program, the ABA requires attendance. In an online structure, this is often accounted for with additional assignments. Students might have to take a quiz, submit a discussion post, or respond to an essay question for the program to record they were “present.”
In my program, this resulted in some busy work. Usually, a program consists of the student independently learning the material and arriving at class ready to discuss it. In an online program, the reality is often that there is an assignment that works a student through understanding. Thus, if you already understand or put in the work, this can feel like busy work.
Alternatively, this also means you get increased practice and increased feedback.
Most in-person programs consist of in-person classes and then a final. This final is usually based on an essay question, but most in-person students have only interacted with their professor verbally. Online students are thus at an advantage because we have been writing essay responses the entire semester.
In-person students won't have written an essay (unless they wisely choose to do so to prep) until their final exam. Students in online programs, or at least my program, were expected to respond to short essay questions every week. Thus, as we approached midterm season, we had five final essay questions available to review and got feedback on those assignments regarding any errors we made. This feedback can be vital in assessing areas one might need to revisit or re-learn.
The grade buffer
The excellent news about busy work is that you get a grade buffer. Most of my classes consist of a midterm and a final; about 15-20% of our grade is based on participation. These are easy points, and for an anxious student like me, they allow me to walk into the test confident that if I do poorly, I at least have a slight grade buffer/boost from my weekly homework and participation assignments.
Overall, online JD programs are similar to in-person but with some key differences. So far, I love having the flexibility of an online program but miss the in-person professor interaction from a more traditional education model. I love the grade buffer but am at times frustrated by assignments that cross the line into busy work. There are pros and cons to any program and online programs are just beginning to sort out their glitches and bugs. If you are considering an online JD program, these are some important elements to consider whether or not this style of education would work for you.
Cori Bratby-Rudd is a queer LA-based writer and co-founder of Influx Collectiv(e)’s Queer Poetry Reading Series. She graduated Cum Laude from UCLA’s Gender Studies department, and received her MFA in Creative Writing from California Institute of the Arts. Cori is a first year law student at Southwestern Law.
