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At the Faculty of Law & Justice, you will be expected to participate in class (seminars and tutorials). Class participation is fundamental to our teaching models and in the law programs is generally assessed. Further, class participation helps you to develop the soft skills required as a lawyer or other professional in the real world.��

Class participation requires effective communication skills, as well as a range of other skills.

Developing communication skills is a core learning outcome for our law programs. We expect you to graduate with demonstrable oral communication skills, including empathetic listening, inter-personal skills, and the ability to communicate cross-culturally. These skills are especially vital for working in the legal profession because no matter the circumstances, there will always be the need for an “expert trusted adviser." You will be expected to communicate “with integrity and in strict confidence” and “in a highly tailored, customised and personalised way.”

Even if you do not to enter the legal profession, effective communication and interpersonal skills are highly valued by employers. By participating in class, you are refining these core skills, which will make you job ready.

To effectively communicate in your class, here are some top tips:

Prepare: you are expected to do required readings before class. If you do your class preparation, you will feel more confident participating in class.

Participate: under the Faculty’s teaching model, “meaningful learning takes place in an environment in partnership with others”, including with peers and the teacher. The teacher’s role is to “moderate the peer discussion and feedback” in a safe, respectful, supportive and non-judgmental environment. Your role is to prepare for class and to actively listen and engage with your peers and the teacher so you can learn and understand the course content and develop key communication and interpersonal skills.

Please remember that you are part of a learning community and that your behaviour in the classroom impacts on others.

Goals of Class Participation:

• Encourage preparation.

• Promote learning, analysis, and evaluation of legal material.

• Develop clear thinking and oral communication skills.��

• Foster collaborative learning.

Types of Participation:

1. Voluntary Contribution:��Students volunteer responses to teacher's questions and comments.
   
   
2. Prepared Contribution: Students respond to pre-assigned questions for class discussion.
   
   
3. Pre-warned Contribution: Specific students are assigned to discuss identified issues in the next class.
   
   
4. Required Contribution: Teacher directs questions to specific students for responses.

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These tasks may count towards Class Participation or be assessed as a standalone assessment item. They can help you understand course themes, focus on specific material, provide feedback to teachers, and gauge your understanding of a topic.��

Online assessments may include, but are not limited to:

• Videos

• Quizzes��

• Short answer responses

• Forum posts

• Reflective exercises

You may be tasked with preparing and presenting on a set topic. Topics may arise out of the class readings or reports on research being undertaken by the class. What separates this assessment task from other oral activities is the explicit marking of the method and manner of the presentation in addition to the matter of the topic.����

Typically, you’ll be graded on visual aids, delivery style, timing, persuasiveness, ability to generate discussion, handling questions, and understanding of the topic.

These assessments develop legal analysis and professional communication skills. Earlier courses in the program tend to focus on problem questions, while later courses use practice-oriented advice questions.

Problem Question:

• Students receive a fact scenario with legal issues.

• They identify relevant facts, apply legal principles, and assess legal breaches.

• Tasks may include assessing damages or penalties.

• Students act as impartial judges.
  

Advice Question:

• Students act as lawyers for a party in the scenario.

• They analyse the legal situation and consider client implications.

• Clear communication to non-lawyers is essential.

• Scenarios may include ambiguity or be in the form of a brief of evidence.

There are five main types of writing assessments in the Faculty of Law and Justice: essays, research essays, research theses, case notes, and court observation reports. Some courses may have additional formats.

The two types of essays progressively reduce the amount of guidance provided, adapting to your increasing knowledge and skills. Early essays offer considerable structure to help you build foundational skills, while later essays and research theses require more advanced abilities, allowing you to demonstrate your growing capabilities throughout the program.

Case notes and court observation reports focus on developing legal knowledge and understanding through concise, clear, and accurate writing. They provide significant opportunities for interaction with the legal system and offer deep insights into legal issues. Additionally, these tasks allow for considerable feedback and student reflection on law and practice.

1. Essay:
   
   

   - Questions and most research materials are provided.
   - Focus on introducing legal research and developing writing skills.

2. Research essay:
   
   - Topic is provided, but students conduct most research independently.
   - Focus on developing independent research skills and refining writing ability.
   
   
3. Research thesis:
   
   - Students choose their own topic and conduct independent research.
   -��Focus on advanced thinking, research skills, and conceptual understanding.
   
   
4. Case note:
   
   - Analyse a specific legal case, including legal issues and judge's reasoning.
   - Includes student commentary and suggestions for law reform.
   -��Develops critical legal thinking and deep learning.
   
   
5. Court observation report:
   
   - Combines experiential learning to develop understanding of the law.
   - Can be adapted to different stages of the program.
   - Students observe court proceedings and report on their observations.
   - Reports can focus on general aspects like trials or specific courts and legal provisions.

There are three main types of group work in the Faculty of Law and Justice:
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1. Ad-hoc:
   
   Ad-hoc group work is foundational and used across all courses. These groups form during class for specific tasks and usually involve short discussions on an issue, reported back to the class. They are typically not graded but contribute to class participation. Ad-hoc groups build interpersonal skills, broaden perspectives, and prepare you for formal group work. As the group become more proficient, the groups will be able manage more complex tasks.
   
   
2. Cooperative:
   
   Cooperative group activities are formal tasks structured by the teacher, often including summative assessment. These tasks focus on developing group skills and support, with individual capacity also assessed. They include both group work and individual components, like papers or sections of a final project. The aim is to introduce group responsibilities while ensuring individual assessment. These activities are useful for complex tasks and increasing class engagement, with the teacher providing necessary guidance.��
   
   
3. Collaborative:��
   
   Collaborative group work is an advanced or capstone type. You will work in small teams to plan and develop a project together, receiving a collective grade. This type focuses on the group process, with individual reflections on the process often included in the assessment. It emphasises problem posing and solving, with significant student autonomy and minimal teacher direction. ��

Examinations:

Exams usually take place during the examination period at the end of the Term and are mostly centrally invigilated by the University.��

All Faculty of Law and Justice examinations are ‘open book’ unless otherwise specified.  For open-book exams, you may bring any hard-copy materials into the exam room: any textbooks and/or notes (printed or handwritten).

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Take-home exams:

Take-home exams vary by course but generally involve a paper released with a short submission window, usually 36-72 hours. These forms of exams combine elements of formal exams and in-term essays. ��

You’ll typically face a complex problem scenario, though some exams may include short essay responses. There can be multiple questions about the same scenario, focusing on different participants. The length of answers depends on the number of questions. Some take-home exams may also require a short essay, commentary, or reflection on a specific topic.