Developing Legal Information Literate Law Students: “That Dog Will Hunt”

The legal profession has been adamant about the need for law schools to more adequately prepare law students for legal practice. Criticisms concerning a student's practical legal skills, such as the ability to conduct legal research, are prevalent. As the legal profession continues to transform, the need for law students and new attorneys to be “legal information literate” prior to being hired is quite evident. In order to instill competent legal research skills, legal research instruction must focus both on incorporating legal information literacy skills and on understanding how students learn. For this reason, teachers of legal research should rethink teaching strategies and explore different teaching methodologies.     

The Gender War in U.S. Sport: Winners and Losers in News Coverage of Title IX

Title IX, the 1972 federal law that guarantees girls and young women access to scholastic sporting opportunities, has been the catalyst for explosive growth in female athletics. Despite evidence that Title IX has opened doors for female athletes without closing them to boys, the law continues to be a source of controversy. This research explores the ways stories in U.S. regional and national newspapers framed Title IX issues between 2002 and 2005, critical years for the civil-rights legislation because of political and legal activity at the national level. Content analysis found that although most stories avoided negative framing devices, stories about the Title IX Commission during 2002 and 2003 more often used negative framing that could perpetuate misunderstanding about the law. Further, paper size, placement of stories and reporter gender were factors in the way stories framed and sourced Title IX coverage. This study points to the need of journalists for a better understanding of the law and its impact on high school and collegiate athletics. Journalists also need to better understand Title IX's relationship with the fiscal hierarchy of collegiate athletics in U.S. universities so “blame the victim” mythology is not reinforced. Journalists should reject patriarchal frames and report about Title IX in ways that benefit public discourse.     

Meeting Business Students' Legal Research Needs: A Selected List of Periodicals on Corporation,Securities, and Bankruptcy

Business students and practitioners are expected to understand the legal framework and the legal environment in which businesses function, but not the complicated black letter law and lengthy judicial opinions. In terms of legal research, different from law school students, business students and practitioners need more secondary legal source support from their libraries. This article will bring the unique legal research needs of business students and practitioners to librarians' attention. A list of selected legal periodicals on corporate law, securities regulations, and bankruptcy will be supplied for libraries to better meet those needs.     

Standing at the Gates: A New Law Librarian Wonders About the Future Role of the Profession in Legal Research Education

ABSTRACT

There have long been complaints about the legal research skills of law school students and recent graduates. In this article the author focuses on the period between the release of two important reports on legal education, the MacCrate Report in 1992 and the Carnegie Report in 2007, examining how law librarians and other professionals involved were engaged in responding to the problem. The author concludes that if law librarians want to be involved more fully in legal research education, some changes or reexamination of our professional culture and positions may be necessary.     

Teaching Legal Research

ABSTRACT

Questions about the importance and viability of legal research and writing as a part of the law school curriculum are not novel. Confronting these questions head-on, however, is a responsibility that should be handled by law librarians. This article addresses the issue of teaching legal research in an academic law library setting. The reasons why the author has pursued an aggressive approach when dealing with legal research instruction are explored. The methods employed to carry out that legal research instruction mandate are examined. creased as legal research and writing are more and more frequently combined and taught by writing faculty.¹ At the same time, the research skills of law students are on a downward spiral. Howland and Lewis document this plunge in an informative survey.² Law librarian Donald Dunn substantiates this decline and attributes it, in part, to “the increased emphasis in law schools on legal writing,”³ in consequence of which, while “legal writing entered the expressway; legal research took the off-ramp.”⁴ Further, law librarians and legal research have even been pummeled by one of America's most popular authors.⁵ In this environment, it may seem unwise to continue to advance the argument that academic law librarians should teach legal research. Notwithstanding the obstacles that face such instruction, law librarians have an obligation to press forward in this important work.⁶ Legal writing instructors have not demonstrated that they have the expertise to provide this instruc-tion.⁷ Likewise, law faculty have demonstrated that they do not have the interest in tackling the task.⁸ Say two authorities on the subject: “Regular faculty members generally do not teach a research course, and when they do decide to teach one, the results are invariably disastrous. Most law faculty members cannot teach legal research because they do not understand it themselves. If compelled to teach the course, they rebel.”⁹ Perhaps it is time for law schools to cede the stewardship for legal research instruction to those information professionals who have been trained and are qualified to teach legal research instruction -law librarians.¹⁰ And it is time for any reticent law librarians to accept the obligation to take a more proactive approach toward teaching legal research.¹¹     

Motivating Law Students to Develop Competent Legal Research Skills

The results of a recent survey indicate that most law students do not consider learning legal research skills important. This article addresses ways in which academic law librarians can help counter negative attitudes toward legal research. The article also contains suggestions for helping motivate law students to develop competent legal research skills. The author encourages academic law librarians to assert their role in legal education by reevaluating legal research programs and, where appropriate, implementing positive change.     

Theirs Not to Reason Why,Theirs but to Make Law Review or Die

Abstract

The following annotated bibliography seeks to provide a quick research tool for people interested in understanding and, of course, improving legal scholarship in the United States. In Part I, we provide a brief introduction to the law review system. In Part II, we evaluate various articles that critique the law review system. In Part III, we examine law review articles that critique law review students themselves. In Part IV, we summarize some of the articles that recount the history of law reviews. In Part V, we compile several articles that look at citation trends for legal scholarship. In Part VI, we discuss miscellaneous articles about law reviews.     

读者权利的法律特征

着重阐述了读者权利的法律特征,对读者权利的法理内涵进行了一定程度的探讨,为"读者第一"过渡到"读者权利"提供法律分析.     

Joining the Conversation: Law Library Research Assistant Programs and Current Criticisms of Legal Education

Law libraries should play a greater role in addressing the current crisis in legal education. Proponents for educational reform often view libraries as a vehicle for cost savings, while overlooking the ability of libraries to train students in the skills and competencies that are essential for the practice of law. Libraries’ research assistant programs can be particularly effective in imparting workplace values and lawyering skills beyond the traditional law school curriculum. This article encourages libraries to build on the strengths of their research assistant programs as a substantive way to equip law students with essential skills for today's legal marketplace.     

Teaching Cost-Effective Research Skills: Have We Overemphasized Its Importance?

Surveys of law librarians show concern with the lack of cost-effective research skills of law students and new associates. Some commentators call for greater emphasis on the subject in legal research classes. To explore whether the subject merits increased instructional attention, the author surveyed second- and third-year law students at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law about their summer research experiences. The purpose of the survey was to find out how much importance summer employers placed on containing online research costs. The student survey results contradict the commonly expressed view that employers are greatly concerned with containing online research costs. The author posits that law library surveys generally reflect the experiences of large firm librarians, whereas the great majority of students and practicing attorneys do not work at these organizations. The concerns of these librarians might not be as relevant for students who work at smaller firms and government organizations. The author notes that the survey results suggest that there is no need for increased emphasis on cost-effective research at schools that do not have a large percentage of students who go on to work at large firms.     

The Well-Furnished Business Law Library

Most business law faculty agree that their students should be exposed to outside reading in order to broaden their understanding of course materials, better relate the law to practical business situations, and become aware of future trends in the legal environment. For these reasons, many business law teachers send their students to the library to research and write reports using various source materials, including cases outside the textbook, historical background material on the various areas of the law and current journals and newspaper articles. For those teaching at large universities with well-stocked libraries, the choices of research sources are many and varied. However, for those teaching at small universities or community colleges, the choices may be quite limited indeed. Often, at the smaller schools, business law teachers may be given a very limited budget and allowed to order only a few books a year. The question arises, then, for the business law teachers at smaller schools: "What are the most important research sources to have in their libraries?" If a priority list could be drawn up, those business law faculties would be able to use the little library money they do have in a more beneficial way. This article will discuss the library materials which business law teachers feel are necessary as resource tools, and the order of priority in which they should be acquired. The information supporting this article will be acquired by a survey of randomly selected teachers of business law in AACSB-accredited schools.     

Experiential Learning: Context and Connections for Legal Research–A Case Study

The American Bar Association requires that all law students receive “substantial instruction” in legal research. This article discusses a unique legal research program that meets this requirement by focusing on experiential learning. Two components of experiential learning, context and connections, are explained pedagogically and specifically as to legal research curriculum.     

Innovative Instructional Methods

SUMMARY

Academic law librarians must teach law students the legal-research skills they will need both now and in the future. Furthermore, legal-research instruction should be consistent with a variety of learning styles in order to help all students learn more effectively and efficiently. This article discusses methods and tools that can be used to engage different learning styles, extend the learning environment beyond the classroom without unduly burdening the professor or student, and help students transfer what they learn to future legal research situations.     

How college students evaluate and share “fake news” stories

The spread of “fake news” stories online has become a pressing concern in the United States and around the world in recent years. Social media platforms enable the rapid spread of such misinformation and also make evaluating the credibility of online information more difficult. Since college students are frequent users of social media, they are particularly likely to be exposed to fake news. A survey was conducted with 63 undergraduate students in which they identified and evaluated examples of both fake and real news stories and reported their associated information behaviors. Results showed correlations between accurate identification of fake news stories and specific critical evaluation behaviors and strategies. However, students were unable to accurately evaluate their own skills, and their willingness to share fake news stories on social media was not related to accurate identifications or evaluations of trustworthiness. This study contributes to the understanding of not just how accurately students evaluate fake news stories, but of the specific information-seeking behaviors and critical evaluation strategies that are associated with accurate identifications and evaluations and with willingness to share news stories on social media. Implications for educators and directions for future research are discussed.     

电子文件法律效力研究的相关概念分析

For many researchers confused the study of legal effect of electronic papers and the study of computer evidence and electronic evidence, the author put forward his own ideas from an angle of archival science and with views of speciality, to avoid a dilemma of future legal law in practice for the confused concepts.     

Following the Herd: Bringing Electronic Casebooks into the Law School

Should law school faculty integrate electronic casebooks into their courses? After describing the eTextbook market forces, this article posits that digital casebooks will not only be in great demand, but also can assist in lowering the cost of legal education while creating more practice-ready students. Additionally, technological improvements in eCasebook platforms will address the unique needs of law students, thereby increasing acceptance and usage. The article concludes with a brief survey of current eCasebook alternatives and an argument for the creation of value-added open source, open access digital casebooks with assistance from the law library.     

The Search for Analogous Legal Authority

Analogous legal authority-authority that is persuasive because of similarity in some important aspects but is not directly on point-is difficult for even the most seasoned researcher to locate. It is especially difficult to teach first year law students the importance of this kind of authority and a methodology which will assist them in locating it. The problem is compounded by the specific term requirements of full text computer assisted legal research. This article challenges legal research specialists to devise ways of teaching law students manual and computerized methods of locating analogous authority.     

Teaching Specialized Legal Research: Business Associations

Business associations are a complex substantive topic that can be included in an advanced legal research course that teaches students sophisticated research, writing, and citation skills. This article presents the basic substantive law regarding business associations necessary to deliver instruction about advanced legal research, writing, and citation. This article also offers a model syllabus with suggested sources and assignments for students. These research assignments require students to perform tasks such as citing primary and secondary sources, learning advanced research skills using loose-leaf materials, assimilating information from multiple sources into cogent narratives, locating information using various electronic resources, digests, and other secondary sources, and locating and using forms pertinent to business association agreements. This article also provides an instructor with twenty-five suggested sources to use in assigning materials to students. These sources consist of both print and electronic versions. They additionally consist of treatises, monographs, guides, model statutory materials, electronic databases, Web sites, form guides, casebooks, a digest, and a citation manual.     

An Empirical Study on the Research and Critical Evaluation Skills of Law Students

Although scholars have explored many aspects of legal education, the fundamental analysis of research behavior and the quality of research skills remains somewhat uncharted territory. There have been assessments of the research skills of incoming law students and the effectiveness of various research programs but little to assess skills and preferences of existing law students. Building on surveys and studies from other disciplines, this article describes an effort to gather empirical data on law students' legal research practices.     

Alternatives to the Term Paper:

The inadequacies of the traditional term paper are well-known to reference and instruction librarians. Term papers often fail to develop appropriate and mature research habits in undergraduates. Unless carefully monitored by teaching faculty, students procrastinate, do not formulate appropriate search strategies, fail to think critically about library sources consulted, and, in some cases, engage in academic dishonesty. Librarians can offer teaching faculty alternative assignments to the traditional term paper, assignments that encourage better use of library materials, stimulate student interest, develop a more holistic perspective on the artificial divisions of academia, and perhaps most important, facilitate growth in critical thinking. Robert Ennis' critical thinking goals are offered as a foundation for planning alternative library assignments - goals that include such behaviors as focussing on an issue, analyzing arguments, asking clarifying questions, evaluating reliability of sources, and examining assumptions. Alternative library assignments should be designed with these overarching goals in mind, so that students are challenged to grow intellectually. Library assignments that encourage critical thinking will foster multiple perspectives on "real world" issues, increased awareness of the assumptions used by various academic disciplines, and a questioning, thoughtful attitude toward printed information. Librarians who develop such assignments will contribute greatly to the current movement to revitalize undergraduate education.