For the past two weeks I have met many new first-year students. Feedback on midterms, practice questions, or legal practice assignments has begun. So students who previously had thought they did not need assistance – or at least were delaying assistance – have taken the plunge. Some have realized they need better time management routines for more study time. Some have realized they definitely need to start or catch up on outlines. Some have asked about IRAC or multiple-choice assistance. Some have realized that they need to curb procrastination. Some are just anxious and wondering if they should be more or less anxious than they currently are.
Other students, both 1L and upper-division, are returning for 10,000-mile checkups. We are tweaking their previous time management routines for more study time now that they are more efficient and effective at class preparation and outlines. We are exploring the different tasks that all make up exam review. We are discussing how to condense their outlines into attack outlines or how to add visual organizers for some learners. Memory strategies have been a popular topic with these students who have made progress on black letter law, but have a few stumbling blocks. 2Ls and 3Ls are thinking ahead to exam schedules and evaluating courses in that light.
And with both the new and returning students, there are good measures of dispelling rumors about grading for 1Ls (the grapevine is especially bizarre right now), praising progress and wise decisions, and motivating the procrastinators. In some cases I am dispensing tissues, in some cases packets or handouts, and in some I just let them vent before we look for solutions.
The students who are pretty much on target leave with renewed confidence and strategies. The students who are catching up but not in critical shape leave having regrouped. The students who are getting close to a danger zone leave with a reality check and a plan – and usually follow-up appointments.
For now, ASP is a bit like a local medical clinic: some need vitamins or a bandaid; some need an ace bandage or cold remedy; a few need crutches or a walking boot. Right now no epidemics or massive injuries have crossed the threshold.
But I have been doing ASP enough years to know that the triage cases will show up right at the end – just before and after Thanksgiving Break. And like any good ER doctor, I will try everything I can to save the patients. (Amy Jarmon)
