The Flipped Law Classroom: Retooling the Classroom to Support Active Teaching and Learning

Canadian Legal Education Annual Review (Forthcoming)

26 Pages Posted: 1 Mar 2014 Last revised: 1 Oct 2014

See all articles by Peter Sankoff

Peter Sankoff

University of Alberta - Faculty of Law

Craig Forcese

University of Ottawa - Common Law Section

Date Written: February 27, 2014

Abstract

One option for changing the traditional lecture/Socratic method of law teaching is the "flipped" classroom, a teaching technique being used to great effect in both high schools and universities. The essence of the flipped classroom is straightforward. Instead of asking students to analyse scenarios by reading beforehand, and using class time to provide lecture content, the "flip" uses a variety of new technologies to reverse the standard pattern. Under this model, professors deliver prepackaged lectures outside of class, allowing classroom time to be used for a range of interactive pursuits.

In late 2013, the authors learned about each other's adoption of the flipped classroom as a model of instruction. A private conversation and exchange of ideas followed. Rather than keep this exchange to ourselves, we held a workshop at the University of Ottawa that focused on our courses, the reasons for moving to the flipped classroom model and a range of other matters of interest to the audience. The workshop was recorded and posted online. This article is the product of that workshop.

We divide it into three sections. In the first – a research overview – we review several of the academic studies on "flipped" teaching, addressing issues commonly raised by those considering the concept. The second section then comprises a lightly footnoted transcript of our 2013 forum. The third section offers a brief conclusion and some thoughts on the future of the flipped classroom.

Keywords: flipped classroom, legal education, technology

Suggested Citation

Sankoff, Peter and Forcese, Craig, The Flipped Law Classroom: Retooling the Classroom to Support Active Teaching and Learning (February 27, 2014). Canadian Legal Education Annual Review (Forthcoming), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2402379 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2402379

Peter Sankoff (Contact Author)

University of Alberta - Faculty of Law ( email )

Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H5
Canada

Craig Forcese

University of Ottawa - Common Law Section ( email )

57 Louis Pasteur Street
Ottawa, K1N 6N5
Canada

HOME PAGE: http://www.cforcese.ca

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