re: Online Law Schools: Do They Do Distance Learning Students Justice?

LawGirl — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:22:02 GMT

I am a student at the California School of Law. Many law students, like me, cannot attend a full time traditional residential “brick and mortar” law school due to work or family commitments, due to the financial burdens of the high tuition at such schools and/or due to the enormous cost of moving to and residing at such schools.

The providing of a high quality legal education at a reasonable cost and at a pace and with location convenience designed for persons with family and job commitments is accomplished at the California School of Law by a a "virtual classroom" online teaching program in which the faculty and students interact verbally with each other, in “real time,” just as if they were physically in the same room. The traditional Socratic Method is used at the school. We students also form online study groups.

The School's truly intreractive teaching program is revolutionary. The California School of Law is the only distance learning law school where there is direct and "live" questioning and answering between professors and students, as is done at the prestigious ABA accredited law schools. For details on this, in comparison to other schools, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correspondence_law_school.

Although the California School is new, in operation just short of three years, it appears that the School's method of instruction already is bearing results. Those students at the California School of Law who took the June 2009 “baby bar,” who had taken the school’s now-required pre-admission legal method course and who took the School’s recommended but non-mandatory review course designed to prepare students for the baby bar, had a 100 % passage rate. For a detailed statistical presentation and analysis of baby bar results for students at the California School of Law, as well as the passage rates at other distance learning law schools go to Wikipedia: Distance Learning Law Schools, at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correspondence_law_school.

Americas Legal Bookstore has published and is distributing a book entitled “The Online Law Schools Book”. The book is written by Domenick Latella, and is a review of California on-line law schools . Mr Latella wrote regarding the California School of Law:

"California School of Law is THE ONLY SCHOOL

TO OFFER LIVE SOCRATIC METHOD TEACHING ONLINE.

"The school is the only Online Law School to offer live

mandatory attendance of classes, with the true law

school way of teaching using the Socratic Method.

If there are critics of on-line law schools out there

saying that online students are missing out on things

by not being GRILLED by their teachers, look no further.

If you want a true law school experience, look no further.

"This is the closest thing to a real law school. You

will learn how to prepare for class, interact live in

class, and have a true Law School experience!

That my law school is a bona fide institution is proven by the fact that every entering student, before being formally admitted, must pass a pre-admission course designed to "weed out" those students who lack either the comittment or the academic ability to perform at a high quality law school. No tuition is charged for this course. I am informed that about 20 to 25 % of the students either fail the course or voluntarily withdraw. Further, I am informed that the School just had its registration confirmed, after a thorough review, by the State Bar.

The website address of the California School of Law is http://www.californiaschooloflaw.com/.