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44-415: The teaching style based on casebooks is known as the casebook method and is supposed to instill in law students how to "think like a lawyer ." The casebook method is most often used in law schools in countries with common law legal systems , where case law is a major source of law . Most casebooks are authored by law professors , usually with two, three, or four authors, at least one of whom will be

88-496: A Socratic circle ) is a pedagogical approach based on the Socratic method and uses a dialogic approach to understand information in a text. Its systematic procedure is used to examine a text through questions and answers founded on the beliefs that all new knowledge is connected to prior knowledge, that all thinking comes from asking questions, and that asking one question should lead to asking further questions. A Socratic seminar

132-900: A 13th edition). The leading publishers of casebooks in the United States are Thomson West (publisher of the Foundation Press and American Casebook Series imprints), Aspen Publishing , and LexisNexis . Each of these publishers uses a quickly identifiable color and pattern for their book covers across all subjects. Traditionally, the covers of casebooks came in the colors red, blue, or brown, although West's American Casebook Series has since switched to faded black cloth as an environmentally-friendly move. Casebooks are intended only for use as teaching devices, but not as reference works. They are notorious for being "somewhat opaque", in that they are merely intended to deliver information in "small drips" during an entire law school semester under

176-516: A casebook for a law school course will never say that. Rather, the law student must deduce those principles from the somewhat archaic text of the Court of Exchequer's mid-19th-century decision. This teaching method differs in two ways from the teaching methods used in most other academic programs: (1) it requires students to work almost exclusively with primary source material, which can be written in obscure or obsolete language for older cases; and (2)

220-593: A market for commercial study aids "keyed" to a particular casebook edition. These study aids are generally summaries (" briefs ") of the cases from the casebook to which it is "keyed," presenting them in the same order as the casebook. Often written by the same author who wrote the associated casebook, and published by the same company, "keyed" study aids are useful in distilling cases down to black-letter law . Popular study aid product lines include Legalines, High Court Case Summaries, and Gilbert Law Summaries published by West Thomson Reuters, Casenotes Legal Briefs by Aspen, and

264-439: A passage of text that students must read beforehand and facilitate dialogue. Sometimes, a facilitator will structure two concentric circles of students: an outer circle and an inner circle. The inner circle focuses on exploring and analysing the text through the act of questioning and answering. During this phase, the outer circle remains silent. Students in the outer circle are much like scientific observers watching and listening to

308-459: A professor at the top of his or her field in the area under discussion. New editions of casebooks often retain the names of famous professors on their covers decades after those professors have died. Updating of the books, then, falls on the shoulders of a younger generation of their colleagues. Such casebooks are often known by the names of the leading professor authors, such as Prosser , Wade, & Schwartz's, Torts : Cases & Materials (now in

352-425: A supplement to the studying process. Socratic method The Socratic method (also known as method of Elenchus or Socratic debate ) is a form of argumentative dialogue between individuals, based on asking and answering questions. In Plato 's dialogue " Theaetetus ", Socrates describes his method as a form of "midwifery" because it is employed to help his interlocutors develop their understanding in

396-404: A thought-provoking discussion. The text ought to be appropriate for the participants' current level of intellectual and social development. It provides the anchor for dialogue whereby the facilitator can bring the participants back to the text if they begin to digress. Furthermore, the seminar text enables the participants to create a level playing field – ensuring that the dialogical tone within

440-405: A typical American law school class is supposed to be a dialogue about the meaning of a case, not a straightforward lecture. In turn, this case dialogue process (by publicly exposing and examining the student's understanding of the material in the company of their peers) helps students develop the psychological toughness required of professional advocates. In some law schools, the casebook method

484-446: A way analogous to a child developing in the womb. The Socratic method begins with commonly held beliefs and scrutinizes them by way of questioning to determine their internal consistency and their coherence with other beliefs and so to bring everyone closer to the truth. In modified forms, it is employed today in a variety of pedagogical contexts. In the second half of the 5th century BC, sophists were teachers who specialized in using

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528-541: Is causal or merely correlative. Yet, W. K. C. Guthrie in The Greek Philosophers sees it as an error to regard the Socratic method as a means by which one seeks the answer to a problem, or knowledge. Guthrie claims that the Socratic method actually aims to demonstrate one's ignorance. Socrates, unlike the Sophists , did believe that knowledge was possible, but believed that the first step to knowledge

572-687: Is due to the lack of knowledge of the student. Boghossian mentions that even though the questions may be perplexing, they are not originally meant for it, in fact such questions provoke the students and can be countered by employing counterexamples. The Socratic method, in the form of Socratic questioning , has been adapted for psychotherapy, most prominently in classical Adlerian psychotherapy , logotherapy , rational emotive behavior therapy , cognitive therapy and reality therapy . It can be used to clarify meaning, feeling, and consequences, as well as to gradually unfold insight, or explore alternative actions. The Socratic method has also recently inspired

616-486: Is not a debate. The goal of this activity is to have participants work together to construct meaning and arrive at an answer, not for one student or one group to "win the argument". This approach is based on the belief that participants seek and gain deeper understanding of concepts in the text through thoughtful dialogue rather than memorizing information that has been provided for them. While Socratic seminars can differ in structure, and even in name, they typically involve

660-486: Is not the only dialogue in which theories normally expounded by Plato's Socrates are broken down through dialectic. Instead of arriving at answers, the method breaks down the theories we hold, to go "beyond" the axioms and postulates we take for granted. Therefore, myth and the Socratic method are not meant by Plato to be incompatible; they have different purposes, and are often described as the "left hand" and "right hand" paths to good and wisdom. In Plato's early dialogues,

704-527: Is the central technique of the Socratic method. The Latin form elenchus (plural elenchi ) is used in English as the technical philosophical term. The most common adjectival form in English is elenctic ; elenchic and elenchtic are also current. This was also very important in Plato's early dialogues. Socrates (as depicted by Plato) generally applied his method of examination to concepts such as

748-681: Is used in conjunction with lectures or other more structured forms of instruction. This is especially true in classes which are more heavily geared toward statutory law , such as tax law (which in the USA is governed by the Internal Revenue Code ) and certain areas of commercial law (particularly courses dealing with the Uniform Commercial Code ). This method is also used in other common law countries, including Canada , Australia and New Zealand . To facilitate

792-456: The virtues of piety , wisdom , temperance , courage , and justice . Such an examination challenged the implicit moral beliefs of the interlocutors, bringing out inadequacies and inconsistencies in their beliefs, and usually resulting in aporia . In view of such inadequacies, Socrates himself professed ignorance. Socrates said that his awareness of his ignorance made him wiser than those who, though ignorant, still claimed knowledge. This claim

836-526: The Understanding series and Q&A series by LexisNexis. Casebook method The casebook method , similar to but not exactly the same as the case method , is the primary method of teaching law in law schools in the United States . It was pioneered at Harvard Law School by Christopher Columbus Langdell . It is based on the principle that rather than studying highly abstract summaries of legal rules (the technique used in most countries),

880-432: The best way to learn American law is to read the actual judicial opinions which become the law under the rule of stare decisis (due to its Anglo-American common law origin). To set up the casebook method of law study, American law professors traditionally collect the most illustrative cases concerning a particular area of the law in special textbooks called casebooks . Some professors heavily edit cases down to

924-537: The case, if there is one—in certain heavily contested areas of the law, there will not be any one correct rule. By answering the professor's questions, "the student learns how to think like a lawyer." A typical example in the law of contracts is Hadley v Baxendale (1854), a case that is still routinely tested on bar examinations today. Treatises designed for practicing lawyers as well as textbooks for students earning non-legal degrees (i.e., business law courses for business administration students) concisely state

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968-514: The casebook method is coupled with the Socratic method in American law schools. For a given class, a professor will assign several cases from the casebook to read, and may also require students to be familiar with any notes following those cases. In class, the professor will ask students questions about the assigned cases to determine whether they identified and understood the correct rule from

1012-931: The casebook method of study, "law school outlines" are used as legal topic study aids . Typically, the outlines are created by law school students; however, there are professional outlines also available. An outline typically provides a concise and direct statement of legal issues in a particular area of law , organized according to the typical law school curriculum . In some cases, outlines are organized according to specific professors or courses. Outlines often remove many legal nuances and fact specific distinctions in case law to establish more generalized legal principles. Students must remember to be cautious before relying on outlines written by others found on online databases. They frequently come with copyright notices and may often be outdated. Many such sites also warn their users that relying on these outlines alone will not be sufficient to prepare for an exam and they should only be used as

1056-435: The classroom remains consistent and pure to the subject or topic at hand. Some practitioners argue that "texts" do not have to be confined to printed texts, but can include artifacts such as objects, physical spaces, and the like. Socratic seminar texts are able to challenge participants' thinking skills by having these characteristics: Socratic texts can be divided into two main categories: Socratic seminars are based upon

1100-601: The conversation of the inner circle. When the text has been fully discussed and the inner circle is finished talking, the outer circle provides feedback on the dialogue that took place. This process alternates with the inner circle students going to the outer circle for the next meeting and vice versa. The length of this process varies depending on the text used for the discussion. The teacher may decide to alternate groups within one meeting, or they may alternate at each separate meeting. The most significant difference between this activity and most typical classroom activities involves

1144-492: The discussion, and to limit contributions from those who tend to dominate. She or he prompts participants to elaborate on their responses and to build on what others have said. The leader guides participants to deepen, clarify, and paraphrase, and to synthesize a variety of different views. The participants share the responsibility with the leader to maintain the quality of the Socratic circle. They listen actively to respond effectively to what others have contributed. This teaches

1188-399: The elenchus is the technique Socrates uses to investigate, for example, the nature or definition of ethical concepts such as justice or virtue. According to Gregory Vlastos , it has the following steps: One elenctic examination can lead to a new, more refined, examination of the concept being considered, in this case it invites an examination of the claim: "Courage is wise endurance of

1232-414: The famous rules announced in that case that (1) consequential damages for breach of contract are limited to those foreseen by the parties at the time of contracting, thus implying that (2) a party must notify the other up front of its specific needs in order to expand what is mutually foreseeable and thereby recover consequential damages if the other breaches. Thus stated, Hadley seems simple enough, but

1276-458: The individual and to the state", and that "life without examination [dialogue] is not worth living". Socrates rarely used the method to actually develop consistent theories, and he even made frequent use of creative myths and allegories . The Parmenides dialogue shows Parmenides using the Socratic method to point out the flaws in the Platonic theory of forms , as presented by Socrates; it

1320-508: The interaction of peers. The focus is to explore multiple perspectives on a given issue or topic. Socratic questioning is used to help students apply the activity to their learning. The pedagogy of Socratic questions is open-ended, focusing on broad, general ideas rather than specific, factual information. The questioning technique emphasizes a level of questioning and thinking where there is no single right answer. Socratic seminars generally start with an open-ended question proposed either by

1364-449: The leader or by another participant. There is no designated first speaker; as individuals participate in Socratic dialogue, they gain experience that enables them to be effective in this role of initial questioner. The leader keeps the topic focused by asking a variety of questions about the text itself, as well as questions to help clarify positions when arguments become confused. The leader also seeks to coax reluctant participants into

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1408-400: The method improves creative and critical thinking, there is a flip side to the method. He states that the teachers who use this method wait for the students to make mistakes, thus creating negative feelings in the class, exposing the student to possible ridicule and humiliation. Some have countered this thought by stating that the humiliation and ridicule is not caused by the method, rather it

1452-568: The method is most commonly found within the so-called " Socratic dialogues ", which generally portray Socrates engaging in the method and questioning his fellow citizens about moral and epistemological issues. But in his later dialogues, such as Theaetetus or Sophist , Plato had a different method to philosophical discussions, namely dialectic . Elenchus ( Ancient Greek : ἔλεγχος , romanized :  elenkhos , lit.   'argument of disproof or refutation; cross-examining, testing, scrutiny esp. for purposes of refutation' )

1496-404: The most important paragraphs, while deleting nearly all citations and paraphrasing everything else; a few present all cases in full, and most others are in between. One common technique is to provide almost all of the entire text of a landmark case which created an important legal rule, followed by brief notes summarizing the holdings of other cases which further refined the rule. Traditionally,

1540-472: The participants to think and speak persuasively using the discussion to support their position. Participants must demonstrate respect for different ideas, thoughts and values, and must not interrupt each other. Questions can be created individually or in small groups. All participants are given the opportunity to take part in the discussion. Socratic circles specify three types of questions to prepare: Scholars such as Peter Boghossian suggest that although

1584-472: The role of the teacher. In Socratic seminar, the students lead the discussion and questioning. The teacher's role is to ensure the discussion advances regardless of the particular direction the discussion takes. Teachers use Socratic seminar in different ways. The structure it takes may look different in each classroom. While this is not an exhaustive list, teachers may use one of the following structures to administer Socratic seminar: No matter what structure

1628-476: The soul". Most Socratic inquiries consist of a series of elenchi and typically end in puzzlement known as aporia . Michael Frede points out Vlastos' conclusion in step No. 5 above makes nonsense of the aporetic nature of the early dialogues. Having shown a proposed thesis is false is insufficient to conclude some other competing thesis must be true. Rather, the interlocutors have reached aporia , an improved state of still not knowing what to say about

1672-482: The subject under discussion. The exact nature of the elenchus is subject to a great deal of debate, in particular concerning whether it is a positive method, leading to knowledge, or a negative method used solely to refute false claims to knowledge. Some qualitative research shows that the use of the Socratic method within a traditional Yeshiva education setting helps students succeed in law school , although it remains an open question as to whether that relationship

1716-429: The supervision of a law professor. They do not always include legal doctrines in their most current form, as the point of a casebook (especially in first-year survey courses) is merely to introduce students to such doctrines. For more straightforward and current summaries of a particular area of law, students and attorneys turn to hornbooks . The prevalence of the casebook method in American law schools has given rise to

1760-399: The teacher employs, the basic premise of the seminar/circles is to turn partial control and direction of the classroom over to the students. The seminars encourage students to work together, creating meaning from the text and to stay away from trying to find a correct interpretation. The emphasis is on critical and creative thinking. A Socratic seminar text is a tangible document that creates

1804-517: The tools of philosophy and rhetoric to entertain, impress, or persuade an audience to accept the speaker's point of view. Socrates promoted an alternative method of teaching, which came to be called the Socratic method. Socrates began to engage in such discussions with his fellow Athenians after his friend from youth, Chaerephon , visited the Oracle of Delphi , which asserted that no man in Greece

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1848-494: Was based on a reported Delphic oracular pronouncement that no man was wiser than Socrates. While this belief seems paradoxical at first glance, in fact it allowed Socrates to discover his own errors. Socrates used this claim of wisdom as the basis of moral exhortation. He claimed that the chief goodness consists in the caring of the soul concerned with moral truth and moral understanding, that "wealth does not bring goodness, but goodness brings wealth and every other blessing, both to

1892-423: Was recognition of one's ignorance. Guthrie writes, "[Socrates] was accustomed to say that he did not himself know anything, and that the only way in which he was wiser than other men was that he was conscious of his own ignorance, while they were not. The essence of the Socratic method is to convince the interlocutor that whereas he thought he knew something, in fact he does not." A Socratic seminar (also known as

1936-433: Was wiser than Socrates. Socrates saw this as a paradox , and began using the Socratic method to answer his conundrum. Diogenes Laërtius , however, wrote that Protagoras invented the "Socratic" method. Plato famously formalized the Socratic elenctic style in prose—presenting Socrates as the curious questioner of some prominent Athenian interlocutor—in some of his early dialogues, such as Euthyphro and Ion , and

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