In-Class Exercises to Teach Black Letter Law Plus Analytical Skills

The Institute for Law Teaching and Learning Blog’s Idea of the Month is entitled: Using Formative Assessment to Speed Up Doctrinal Coverage.   Rory Bahadur of the Washburn University School of Law shares an in-class exercise which contains a fact pattern and an incomplete IRAC (Issue, Rule, Analysis, and Conclusion) essay answer to the problem.  Students must fill in the analysis section.   Professor Bahadur says:

“The exercise takes only one class period. Don’t take my word for it— try it in class. The learning outcomes are greater than the sum of the parts of the exercise. Your students will not only learn the doctrine but will also understand how to apply it. More generally, this exercise also demonstrates that students learn more when their teachers get out of the way.”