Teaching Resources for Law Faculty

Law School’s Learning Outcomes

Marquette Law School’s learning outcomes for its J.D. program, which have been established in accordance with ABA standards, may be viewed here. 

Course Learning Outcomes

The following are resources on developing student learning outcomes for an individual course:

Teaching Law by Design by Michael Hunter Schwartz; Sophie Sparrow; Gerald F. Hess Call Number: LAW RESERVE KF272 .S37 2009 ISBN: 9781594604973 Publication Date: 2009-06-01
Teaching Law by Design for Adjuncts by Sophie Sparrow; Gerald F. Hess; Michael Hunter Schwartz Call Number: K100 .S68 2017 ISBN: 9781611637021 Publication Date: 2017-02-09

A syllabus template for faculty at Marquette Law School may be downloaded here.

Teaching Law by Design by Michael Hunter Schwartz; Sophie Sparrow; Gerald F. Hess Call Number: LAW RESERVE KF272 .S37 2009 ISBN: 9781594604973 Publication Date: 2009-06-01
Teaching Law by Design for Adjuncts by Sophie Sparrow; Gerald F. Hess; Michael Hunter Schwartz Call Number: K100 .S68 2017 ISBN: 9781611637021 Publication Date: 2017-02-09
Strategies and Techniques of Law School Teaching by Howard E. Katz; Kevin Francis O'Neill Call Number: KF272 .K38 2009 ISBN: 0735588333 Publication Date: 2009-05-01
Teaching the Law School Curriculum by Steven I. Friedland; Gerald Hess Call Number: KF272 .T42 2004 ISBN: 089089244X Publication Date: 2004-10-01

Active Learning

• James McGrath, Planning Your Class to Take Advantage of Highly Effective Learning Techniques, 95 U. Det. Mercy L. Rev. 153 (2018)
• Renee N. Allen & Alicia R. Jackson, Contemporary Teaching Strategies: Effectively Engaging Millennials Across the Curriculum, 95 U. Det. Mercy L. Rev. 1 (2017)
• Cynthia Ho, et al., An Active-Learning Approach to Teaching Tough Topics: Personal Jurisdiction as an Example, 65 J. Legal Educ. 772 (2016)

Team Based Learning

• Janet Weinstein et al., Teaching Teamwork to Law Students, 63 J. Legal Educ. 36 (2013)
• Sophie M. Sparrow & Margaret Sova McCabe, Team-Based Learning in Law, 18 J. Leg. Writing Inst. 153 (2012)
• Anne E. Mullins, Team-Based Learning: Innovative Pedagogy in Legal Writing, 49 U.S.F.L. Rev. F. 53 (2015) Jodi S. Balsam, Teaming Up to Learn in the Doctrinal Classroom, 68 J. Legal Educ. 261 (2019)

Socratic Method

• Jeannie Suk Gersen, The Socratic Method in the Age of Trauma, 130 Harv. L. Rev. 2320 (2017)
• Jamie R. Abrams, Reframing the Socratic Method, 64 J. Legal Educ. 562 (2015)
• Joseph A. Dickinson, Understanding the Socratic Method in Law School Teaching After the Carnegie Foundation's Educating Lawyers, 31 W. New Eng. L. Rev. 97 (2009)

Simulation

• Margaret M. Jackson, From Seminar to Simulation: Wading Out To The Third Wave, 19 J. Gender Race & Just. 127 (2016)
• Paul S. Ferber, Adult Learning Theory and Simulations - Designing Simulations to Educate Lawyers, 9 Clinical L. Rev. 417 (2002)

Flipped Classroom

• Alex B. Matamoros, Answering the Call: Flipping the Classroom To Prepare Practice-Ready Attorneys, 43 Cap. U. L. Rev. 113 (2015)
• William R. Slomanson, Blended Learning: A Flipped Classroom Experiment, 64 J. Legal Educ. 93 (2014)

General Resources (books are available at the Law Library)

• Teaching Pedagogy Videos, LegalED

Expert Learning for Law Students by Michael Hunter Schwartz Call Number: KF283 .S39 2005 ISBN: 1594601135 Publication Date: 2005-06-01
What the Best Law Teachers Do by Michael Hunter Schwartz Call Number: K100 .S39 2013 ISBN: 9780674728134 Publication Date: 2013-08-20
Techniques for Teaching Law 2 by Gerald F. Hess; Steven I. Friedland; Michael Hunter Schwartz; Sophie Sparrow Call Number: KF272 .H47 2011 ISBN: 9781594607509 Publication Date: 2011-06-01
The Law Professor's Handbook by Madeleine Schachter Call Number: KF272 .S32 2004 ISBN: 0890895503 Publication Date: 2004-01-01

Assessment 

In accordance with ABA standards, Marquette Law School uses both formative and summative assessment methods to measure and improve student learning, and to provide meaningful feedback to students. 

Faculty interested in learning more about formative and summative assessment are directed to the articles and books below.

Law Review Articles on Assessment

• Olympia Duhart, The ‘F’ Word: The Top Five Complaints (And Solutions) About Formative Assessment, 67 J. Legal Educ. 531 (2018)
• Herbert N. Ramy, Moving Students from Hearing and Forgetting to Doing And Understanding: A Manual for Assessment In Law School, 41 Cap. U. L. Rev. 837 (2013)
• Carol S. Sargent and Andrea Curcio, Empirical Evidence That Formative Assessments Improve Final Exams, 61 J. Legal Educ. 379 (2012)
• Rogelio A. Lasso, Is Our Students Learning? Using Assessments to Measure and Improve Law School Learning and Performance, 15 Barry L. Rev. 73 (2010)
• Andrea A. Curcio, Moving in the Direction Of Best Practices and The Carnegie Report: Reflections on Using Multiple Assessments in a Large-Section Doctrinal Course, 19 Widener L.J. 159 (2009)

Books on Law School Assessment (available at the Law Library)

Teaching Law by Design by Michael Hunter Schwartz; Sophie Sparrow; Gerald F. Hess Call Number: LAW RESERVE KF272 .S37 2009 ISBN: 9781594604973 Publication Date: 2009-06-01
Teaching Law by Design for Adjuncts by Sophie Sparrow; Gerald F. Hess; Michael Hunter Schwartz Call Number: K100 .S68 2017 ISBN: 9781611637021 Publication Date: 2017-02-09
What the Best Law Teachers Do by Michael Hunter Schwartz Call Number: K100 .S39 2013 ISBN: 9780674728134 Publication Date: 2013-08-20
Strategies and Techniques of Law School Teaching by Howard E. Katz; Kevin Francis O'Neill Call Number: KF272 .K38 2009 ISBN: 0735588333 Publication Date: 2009-05-01
The Law Professor's Handbook by Madeleine Schachter Call Number: KF272 .S32 2004 ISBN: 0890895503 Publication Date: 2004-01-01

Quizzing

Examplify - Examplify is a high stakes assessment program developed and licensed by ExamSoft that enables exam takers to securely take examinations downloaded to their own laptop computers by blocking access to files, programs, and the Internet during an exam. Marquette Law School licenses Examplify and there is no cost to students or faculty.

CALI Lessons - CALI Lessons are our most popular and widely used learning tool. They are computer-based, interactive tutorials that cover narrow topics of law. Browse our library of over 1,000 CALI Lessons. Marquette Law School is a CALI member institution, there is no cost to students or faculty.

CALI QuizWright - QuizWright is a web app that lets teachers write individual MC, T/F, Y/N questions, saves the questions in a personal question bank, allows teachers to bundle the questions into quizzes, turns the quizzes into AutoPublish Lessons that are published to the CALI website and run by students either as LessonLive or LessonLink assessments. Marquette Law School is a CALI member institution, there is no cost to students or faculty.

Polling

iClicker - iClicker is a classroom interactive response system that allows students to participate in polls and answer questions during class. Students can respond with their mobile device using the Reef app. Marquette Law School licenses iClicker, there is no cost to students or faculty.

CALI Instapoll - CALI InstaPoll is an open, online, virtual clicker that allows a teacher or speaker to quickly poll the class or audience. Faculty or speakers just click the 'Create a poll' button to launch a new poll and begin collecting responses. Students or audience members can enter the number of the InstaPoll and click 'Join a poll' to respond to the poll. Marquette Law School is a CALI member institution, there is no cost to students or faculty.

Poll Everywhere -Poll Everywhere is a dynamic online polling platform that allows students to vote on custom teacher-generated polls through text messaging (SMS), smartphone, or computer by visiting this website. With a free educator account with Poll Everywhere, polls can receive up to 40 votes, enough to accommodate most classrooms. 

Qualtrics - Qualtrics is a web-based tool used for creating and conducting online surveys and forms. Marquette's enterprise license allows any Marquette faculty, staff or student to use the tool to administer surveys. Qualtrics is for academic teaching or research purposes only and explicitly excludes any use of Qualtrics for commercial purposes. 

Susan Park & Denise Farag, Transforming the Legal Studies Classroom: Clickers and Engagement, 32 J. Legal Stud. Educ. 47 (2015). 

Collaboration Tools

Microsoft Teams - Students, faculty and staff use Microsoft Teams for online/live class sessions and meetings. Teams sites offer file sharing and threaded conversations that persist. But note that D2L remains the place for course content and asynchronous class discussion.

Office 365 - You can save your files in OneDrive and then work with them from almost any device.

Upload files from your PC, Mac or Mobile device.
Share files with others.
Give others permission to edit files and work on them at the same time.
Get to your files from anywhere, on your computer, tablet, or phone.

Services not approved for University use: Dropbox, iCloud, Amazon Cloud Drive, Google Drive, & Box.

Mind Mapping

• The Mind Map Book by Tony Buzan; Barry Buzan

  Call Number: Raynor Library BF431 .B883 1996

  ISBN: 0452273226

  Publication Date: 1996-03-01

• Mindmapping by Joyce Wycoff

  Call Number: Raynor Library BF449 .W93 1991

  ISBN: 042512780X

  Publication Date: 1991-06-01

Diane Murley, Technology for Everyone..: Mind Mapping Complex Information, 99 Law Libr. J. 175 (2007). 

Francina Cantatore & Ian Stevens, Making Connections: Incorporating Visual Learning in Law Subjects through Mind Mapping and Flowcharts, 22 Canterbury L. Rev. 153 (2016). 

Standard 314. ASSESSMENT OF STUDENT LEARNING

A law school shall utilize both formative and summative assessment methods in its curriculum to measure and improve student learning and provide meaningful feedback to students.

Interpretation 314-1

Formative assessment methods are measurements at different points during a particular course or at different points over the span of a student’s education that provide meaningful feedback to improve student learning. Summative assessment methods are measurements at the culmination of a particular course or at the culmination of any part of a student’s legal education that measure the degree of student learning.

Interpretation 314-2

A law school need not apply multiple assessment methods in any particular course. Assessment methods are likely to be different from school to school. Law schools are not required by Standard 314 to use any particular assessment method. 

ABA 2015 Guidance Memo on Learning Outcomes

Faculty have access to a wide variety of instructional technology to enhance their teaching. Below are the most commonly used technology platforms and tools. Faculty needing assistance with instructional technology are directed to speak with the Media and Technology Group or the Law Library, as appropriate.

Course Management Tools

Desire2Learn (D2L) Each course at Marquette has its own D2L course site with facilities for interactive communication, secure submission of student assignments to faculty, and online quizzes. Support documentation is accessible here	​
Westlaw’s TWEN An online course management tool.  User guides and support are accessible here.
Lexis Classroom An online course management tool. The user guide may be found

Integrating Technology into the Classroom

• James B. Levy, Teaching the Digital Caveman: Rethinking the Use of Classroom Technology in Law School, 19 Chap. L. Rev. 241 (2016)
• Mathew Lyon and Seletha R. Butler, Technology in the Classroom: Clickers, Videos, and Other Media, 15 Transactions: Tenn. J. Bus. L. 617 (2014)
• Stephen M. Johnson, Teaching for Tomorrow: Utilizing Technology to Implement the Reforms of MacCrate, Carnegie, And Best Practices, 92 Neb. L. Rev. 46 (2013)

The following are additional resources relating to law teaching that faculty may find of use:

Institute for Law Teaching and Learning - Washburn University School of Law and the UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law recognize the obligations law schools owe to their students and to society to provide a learning environment that helps students achieve the highest academic standards and prepares students to assume their responsibilities as effective, moral attorneys.

The Institute for Law Teaching and Learning was established to help law schools meet those obligations. It is committed to improving the quality of teaching and learning in legal education.

Ray & Kay Eckstein Law Library

Marquette University Law School Academic Regulations

Marquette University Law School Curriculum Committee - Grading Scale and Guidelines