One of the most difficult aspects of ASP work is figuring
out who is in most need of our help. The
reason? As I see it, the primary reason
for this problem is that we have competing factors at play that don’t always
lead to the same conclusion.
For example, most would agree that we want to get students
into our offices as early as possible. Addressing
weaknesses in how students approach their studies as early as possible, gives
students more time to implement our
ideas and, ultimately, succeed. If earlier
is better, then we should all be using LSAT scores and college GPAs to select
students who should work with us, right?? Not so fast.
Many of us are unconvinced that LSAT scores and college GPAs
are particularly good indicators of success in law school. Of the two, LSAT is likely the better
indicator, but using LSAT scores to identify students in need of assistance is
a tricky proposition. At best, using
LSAT as a prime indicator will produce both overinclusive and underinclusive
results. While using LSAT scores will
help us “capture” students in need of assistance, not all students with
relatively low scores need help. Just as
important, some students with relatively high LSAT scores do need assistance. Also, some of us simply do not like the mixed
message that the pre-selection of students for ASP assistance sends – your
credential are good enough to get into law school, but we really don’t think
you can make it without help.
For these reasons, some folks prefer to use law school
grades to select students who will receive ASP assistance. The main advantages of using law school
grades for this purpose are fairly obvious. We are no longer in the position of having to guess whether someone will
struggle in law school. These students are struggling in law school, and
therefore do require assistance. Almost
as important, these students are more likely to be amenable to receiving help.
Unfortunately, there is an important flaw in using law
school grades to determine who needs help. In some schools, student grades are still based on a single final
examination, making them essentially useless as a means for getting students
into our offices early. In schools where
mid-term exams are common, these grades also tend to come out fairly late in
the year. If students receive their
mid-term grades in January, February, or even March, it can be very difficult
to affect any sort of meaningful change in their study habits prior to final
exams.
There is one source of law school grades, however, that is
too often overlooked when selecting students for ASP assistance – performance
in a legal research and writing class. First, most legal writing professors assess student performance early
and often, and these classes are typically taught in relatively small sections. The number of grades and more intimate
atmosphere allows legal writing professors to determine relatively quickly
whether a student is struggling. From
personal experience, I can tell that you that students who struggle in a legal
writing class are likely to need assistance with more than their legal writing.
I suggest developing a good working relationship with the
folks in your legal writing department. They will know before anyone else that a student needs help. The student will be so thrilled to receive
assistance with his/her writing assignments, that s/he will be more amenable to
other forms of academic help.
(hnr)
