From potential employers to faculty, I hear a common mantra that students are “no longer able to write.” Thus, we need to get them practice ready in a way that apparently we, as law schools, used to do. 

I, too, share frustration with poorly written materials and poor performance generally. I also worry about the practice-ready nature of some of our students. Still, I find myself compelled to say that, in my experience, the vast majority of our students are thoughtful, intelligent, and capable.

I also can say that many of our students do not push themselves to deliver the high-quality work product of which they are capable.  I long for the self-motivated student, the same way I have (at times) longed for the self-motivated employee.  Some people have it, and some people don’t.  Like height, one can’t really teach motivation, but we can try to help students find their own motivation from within.  And we can set expectations high enough that failure is, in fact, an option. 

I have come in contact with quite a few students, and I don’t think we have an actual literacy problem with the students I have taught over the years (a few stark examples, perhaps, to the contrary). A lack of literacy or ability is simply not a fair assessment of virtually all students I have taught. I concede, however, that we often have far too many students who fail to demonstrate their abilities, and that is cause for alarm.  Not working hard is not that same as not being able to do the work, though the result is the same. 

I fully support taking measures to try to address these shortcomings, and the time to do something is now.  We have a moral and ethical obligation that we try to do more. At our law school, we are taking this concern seriously, but I want to make sure we are focusing our concern in the right areas.   

At our school, we have started (another) dialogue about how we can improve our students’ performance, and I think (hope/expect) that those conversations obviously include improving our collective performance as teachers, as well.  The law school community needs to be one that fosters learning.  Part of what everyone in the building, regardless of job, should be committed to is educating our students (on professionalism, as well as legal doctrine) because everything that happens here impacts the educational experience.  What happens in law school, does not stay in law school.  It impacts lives, futures, and communities, including our students, their clients, and every part of where we live, learn, and work.

One of the big keys to all of this is, I think, ensuring that we hold ourselves accountable for the learning of our students, and that means holding them accountable, not just complaining when they come up short.  If we’re not willing to have tough conversations, before (but including) issuing a final grade, we’re not doing our jobs. I love my job, and I care about what I do, but I’m putting myself first on the list of people who need to better.

We have many great students, and I am truly thankful for the countless wonderful I have had the chance to teach.  I have many great colleagues at my school (and at others schools) who care about law students and the world those students can and will impact.  But I also think that, as a group, we as faculty can do better.  It starts with holding ourselves accountable in the way many seem to wish we’d hold our students accountable.  Perhaps not surprisingly, part of truly holding ourselves accountable means holding our students accountable.  I think we need to start there.