Six Law School Deans Form a Discussion Group on Ways to Collaborate on More Effective Use of Technology in Legal Education

New York, NY (April 18, 2011)—The deans of the Australian National University College of Law, IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, the University of Miami School of Law, New York Law School, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law, and Southwestern Law School have agreed to begin a joint conversation on how law schools can collaborate to use technology more effectively and expansively in legal education.

Recognizing that the study of law, like many other aspects of education (and modern life in general), is relying more on technology and moving online, and is subject to being disaggregated and unbundled at a rapid pace, the discussion group will focus on the following issues and ideas:

• how the law schools might work together to explore ways to facilitate blended and online courses and degree programs at these schools and more broadly in legal education.

• the prospect of developing a place on the Web to provide access to learning opportunities and information about a wide variety of legal topics on a “just in time” basis (fixed learning, variable time), untethered from legal education’s restrictions around academic calendar and course/program arrangements (fixed time, variable learning).

• creating a marketplace to bring together those who want to build and sell even finer-grained sets of learning objects, activities, and games with students and others who want those opportunities.

“This conversation is about ways to leverage technology to both improve what we do and address cost issues,” said Patricia D. White, Dean and Professor of Law at the University of Miami School of Law. “We think that there may be advantages and opportunities in the development of educational technologies that are built for legal education and owned by the law schools,” said Chicago-Kent Dean and Professor of Law Harold J. Krent.

“Legal education significantly lags the rest of higher education in integrating online learning and other educational technologies into its programs,” said Bryant Garth, Dean and Professor of Law at Southwestern Law School. Elizabeth R. Parker, Dean of McGeorge School of Law added, “Working together provides an opportunity for us to share the costs of the changes that we all anticipate will come and to gather ideas on the shape of those changes.”

Barry Currier, former Deputy Consultant on Legal Education at the American Bar Association and Dean Emeritus of Concord Law School, the premier online law school in the United States, and Craig Gold, one of the co-founders of the technology company that developed Concord Law School and most recently the Vice President of Technology at Kaplan Legal Education, are joining in the discussion.
 

“By entering into this conversation, my decanal colleagues and I acknowledge that legal education can improve and do more with educational technologies. Together, we will explore ways to make more knowledge and tools available to students, faculty, and many others who want to learn about law for a variety of personal and business reasons. It is not certain where the discussions will take us, but we are excited to begin,” said New York Law School Dean and President Richard A. Matasar.

For more information about the participating law schools, please visit them at:
http://law.anu.edu.au/
http://www.kentlaw.edu/
http://www.law.miami.edu/
http://www.nyls.edu
http://www.mcgeorge.edu/
http://www.swlaw.edu/

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