April 2, 2010

Leader of Cooley's Grand Rapids Campus Provides Text on the Framework for Teaching Law

Associate Dean Nelson Miller

Teaching Law: A Framework for Instructional Mastery by Thomas M. Cooley Law School Associate Dean Nelson Miller, head of Cooley’s Grand Rapids campus, was recently published by Bridge Publishing Group.

The 14-chapter book, which follows a 14-week law school term, includes topics like course objectives, syllabi, lectures, Socratic method, differentiating instruction, integrating instruction, assessment, multiple-choice questions, essay questions, and scoring and grading. It also includes a beginning chapter on the study of teaching law and a closing chapter on teaching vision.

Vickie Eggers, director of the faculty center for instructional support and director of distance learning at Cooley Law School, also created a CD to accompany the book that further enhances and explains each chapter with a PowerPoint presentation.

“Exhaustively researched, the book trains readers to frame proper learning objectives; to use their syllabi more productively; to adopt best practices when they lecture and use Socratic questioning; to make learning more visual; to assist law teachers in integrating skills, knowledge and values and in teaching in ways that are inclusive; and to create better assessment instruments,” Michael Hunter Schwartz, co-author of Teaching Law by Design: Engaging Students from the Syllabus to the Final Exam, said on Amazon.com. “Finally, while the book disavows an intent to inspire, it concludes with a chapter labeled Vision that I personally found quite rousing.”

“There are many judges, lawyers and law professors who teach law in law schools as full-time or adjunct faculty and in pre-law undergraduate programs. Many of these professors have great professional training but might have little or no training in education,” Nelson said. “This book provides a clear and straightforward advice on how to teach law based on extensive research of educational literature.”

Teaching Law: A Framework for Instructional Mastery can be purchased at bridgepublishinggroup.com or amazon.com.

Cooley Law School is the largest law school in the nation. Founded in 1972, the private, non-profit law school operates J.D. programs across Michigan in Lansing, Auburn Hills, Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor. Today, Cooley Law School has nearly 14,000 graduates across the nation and worldwide and also offers joint degree and master of laws programs. Cooley offers enrollment three times a year; in January, May and September.