REFLECTIONS AND
LESSONS
THE FINAL PLENARY
Carolyn Grose, MitchellHamline Law School
Margaret E. Johnson, University of Baltimore School of Law
Session Goals
• To synthesize lessons learned over the course of the conference
• To facilitate articulation of observations about experience in order to
develop insights that may serve as the bases for future actions.
TO THAT END, WE GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO:
• Comment on your feelings about/reactions to the conference ideas;
• Draw connections between your prior lawyering/clinical teaching to the
issues raised during the conference,
• Identify steps to take in order to apply lessons learned in the future.
HOW?
• Part One: Small Group Reflection and Discussion (12 minutes)
• Part Two: Individual Written Reflection (5 minutes)
• Part Three: Small Group Reflection and Discussion (12 minutes)
• Part Four: Large Group Reporting (20 minutes)
Part One: Small Group Reflection
• Gather into a group of 6 people
• Count off 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6
• Identify the two reflection questions associated with your number (next slide)
• Choose the one you find most useful/interesting/applicable
• Starting with person #1, reflect out loud on your questions for one minute
• Repeat for each member of the group
• When everyone has had a turn, discuss common themes, ideas, questions,
thoughts for the remaining time.
Reflection Questions For Small Group
1.
How do you define community?
1.
2.
“Every movement needs ppl who march, ppl
who speak, and lawyers” – what do you think?
What lessons do you draw from the pioneers
of clinical legal education for your teaching?
2.
3.
What role do “Love, courage, justice,
empathy, humility, hope” play in your
teaching?
What tools assist you in assessing progress
toward achieving teaching and justice goals?
3.
4.
“Rebellious lawyering: fighting notion that
women & people of color too marginalized to
stand up for themselves” -- what do you think?
Is there a dichotomy between teaching
lawyering “skills” and “values” like Rebellious
Lawyering?
4.
5.
How does your clinic determine the effects
your work with individual clients has on the
community (however you define community)
My clinical teaching goals have
shifted/stayed the same as a result of this
conference; for instance, …
5.
One of the most useful things I learned here
has been . . . .
6.
“Law teaching is inevitably about justice” –
what do you think?
6.
What does success look like for me, my
students, my clinic, and my community?
Part Two: Individual Written Reflection
• Take out a pen and paper, or open a new page on your laptop
• Answer the following questions (silently):
• What is one idea that you are interested in exploring or implementing
in your clinic?
• What are two short-term steps you would take toward effectuating that
idea?
• What are two long-term steps you would take to effectuate that idea?
Parts Three and Four: Group Debrief
• In same small group, share/discuss your quick-writes,
including what “next steps” you identified
• Identify what ideas and next steps you would like to
share with the larger group
• Identify who will step to the microphone to share
• Share with the large group
• We will keep a running list of ideas and next steps