Teaching Law and Society in the Sociology Classroom: Writing Assignments for Engaging the Sociolegal Imagination

Abstract

A common learning goal of law-related courses taught in sociology classrooms is for students to gain an understanding of the sociological approach to law. This approach emphasizes viewing law as a social process and studying law by analyzing both legal and nonlegal phenomena. A challenge to students’ achievement of this learning goal is their preconceived notions of law as an inherently impartial and closed system. This note details a series of writing assignments that guide students to analyze law from varying perspectives and to reflect on how differing perspectives impact differing approaches to sociolegal problems. A review of assessment data and student feedback suggests that these assignments increase students’ understanding of the sociological approach to law, strengthen their ability to critically evaluate analytical approaches, and solidify their ability to bridge connections between law and other sociological concepts and theories.

How Do Learners Receive Feedback on Note Writing? A Scoping Review

“…39 Of the 19 studies involving feedback from a supervisor, 8 studies highlighted a perceived benefit from the feedback 17,19,21,22,[29][30][31][32] and 8 studies reported an outcome improvement as a result of the feedback. 18,20,[23][24][25][26][27][28] Of the 8 studies involving peer feedback, feedback was perceived as helpful in 3 studies, 31,36,37 with reported outcome improvement in 1 study. 38 Outcome improvements included clinical exam scores, improved quality of notes, and improvement in writing competency.…”

“…Of the 23 included articles, 11 used comments, 21,22,[27][28][29][30][31][32]34,36,38 9 used a rubric, [17][18][19][20][21][22][35][36][37] 6 used a checklist, [23][24][25][26]36,38 2 used traditional grading scales, 22,27 and 3 tested novel feedback systems. 30,33,39 Checklists and rubrics can provide clear, objective feedback and often do not require prior knowledge of the patient or assignment.…”

“…18,20,28,35 Across several studies, students consistently regarded the rubric and checklists as helpful, 17-20, 22,27,31,36 with students reporting that use of rubrics and checklists as a feedback method helped improve their clinical writing skills, 17,19,27,31,36 their confidence in writing, 22,31 and their understanding of the material. 18,20,36 In addition, personalized feedback provided via comments in 11 of 23 articles was deemed helpful. 21,22,[27][28][29][30][31][32]34,36,38 Our search did not identify any comparative studies between the perception and impact of feedback tools, including rubrics and checklists, compared with traditional, personalized commentary feedback.…”

“…In the 16 sources that relied on hypothetical scenarios, benefits included standardization across students, improved assessment of student accuracy because all pertinent information was known, and applicability in preclinical curriculum. [17][18][19][20][21][22][23]27,28,31,[35][36][37][38] Of the 7 studies that used real patient notes, feedback often had greater variability, largely dependent on feedback provider time, and may have introduced more provider subjectivity. [24][25][26]29,30,34 Theme 4: Feedback providers and recipients benefit from having prior training on providing and receiving feedback…”

“…In total, 15 of the 23 studies included sequential or iterative forms of feedback; we defined this form of feedback as consisting of multiple rounds of feedback on the same note or new notes during a specific period. 17,19,20,22,24,26,28,29,31,32,34,35,[37][38][39] Of those 15 studies, 9 resulted in perceived improvement in writing abilities, 17,19,20,22,31,32,35,37,39 with 6 leading to objectively improved notes. 24,26,28,29,34,38 Time spent reviewing a student's note and providing feedback was cited as 9 to 15 minutes.…”