How to Make the Most out of An Academic Conference
Dionne A. Cruickshank
My beginning into Legal Academia
I am an experienced practitioner at the criminal defense bar for the past twenty years, and a trained teacher in secondary school education in the United Kingdom, for close to thirty years; however, despite my experience in advocacy both in the classroom and the court room transitioning to world of academia in a Law School Legal Aid Clinic has been both a daunting and rewarding experience. Having recognised that I could complement my pedagogical skills through interaction with colleagues who had similar interest, I made the decision to join the Association of Law Teachers (ALT) and attended my first conference in 2023.
Conference Attendance
My first ALT conference attendance was important to me as I found that it was a platform wherein, I could be encouraged to be innovate with my pedagogical strategies and at the same time have comparative discussions with international scholars and practitioners. This interaction I have found have been able to refine my teaching techniques by focusing on reflective legal practice and client interviewing, both which is centred around advocacy. Additionally, the attendance at conferences have afforded me the opportunity to extend the delivery of clinical legal education beyond the Socratic method, a method which is aged old. Teaching students the practice of law in a Law School Legal Aid Clinic requires pedagogical skills that extends beyond the Socratic method, a method that has been regarded the core of the legal pedagogy (Bautista 2014). The integration of technology in the delivery of clinical legal education, can be described as an extension of the Socratic method as it has complimented my experiential learning.
Post Covid and Teaching
The delivery of post-covid academic conferences created a space for hybrid conferences, becoming a norm more than they have ever been before. Participating in virtual conferences mid and post covid has allowed me the experience and exposure to contribute to conferences globally without being in the actual space; and provided an added benefit in the reduction of travel cost. It is this virtual space which created the platform for me to be exposed to diverse perspectives which sharpened my ability to contextualise clinic legal education. This perspective provided me with the opportunity to enrich the learning experience of my students in the context of social justice frameworks, having interacted me fellow colleagues from around the globe.
Versatility in Academia
Despite my academic and practical training as a teacher, teaching law requires flexibility and innovation, especially in a technological age. It is important as practitioners in legal academia to prepare tomorrow’s lawyer for the practice of law in the coming years. The preparation requires mentorship and skills training from fellow practitioners who are experienced in digital lawyering. With a law degree of twenty-five years old I have had to learn creative ways to be relevant in my delivery of clinical legal education. Firstly, I found becoming a member of the Association of Law Teachers (ALT) to be a good starting point. The association facilitated platforms such as the early career symposium and mentoring scheme for people new to academia.
The early career symposium provided an avenue in which I could meet other people who were experiencing the same transition, from practice to academia, who shared the same anxieties but had the enthusiasm to discover ways which could sharpen delivery skills. The mentoring scheme, another branch of the ALT, pairs senior academic mentors with early career mentees with similar teaching areas, which facilitates a one-to-one relationship which compliments the mentee’s professional development. With the support of a mentor, it enables early career mentees’ like myself with resources to embark on academic writing, delivery of papers at conferences and publications, beginning with The Law Teacher.
Future in Legal Academia
Regardless of the teaching area of an early career academic, the 21st Century has shown that artificial intelligence is transforming rapidly the practice of law and the administration of the justice system. This requires early career academicslike myself, to incorporate tech in the delivery of their respective modules. I have found and would recommend attending conferences helps in achieving this goal. Whether your attendance at a conference is in the delivery of a paper, submitting a poster board or being a panelist in discussions- I have found that these experiences harness tech skills, once incorporated in the paper, and advocacy skills which is important to early career academics as these skills can be employed in the delivery of clinical legal education.
Where Next?
You may find that conference attendance and conference presentations are key components of future Job Applications and Promotion opportunities and should consider how to make effective use of these in your CV.
Or
As you develop your research, through projects and conference attendance, you may encounter Supervision opportunities, which will continue to test and develop your academic skills.
Sources:
Bautista, L. ‘The Socratic Method as a Pedagogical Method in Legal Education’ (2014) Wollongong: University of Wollongong.
Further Reading:
Kleinig, J. and Evans, N.G. ‘Human Flourishing, Human Dignity, and Human Rights’ (2012) 32 Law and Philos 539–564 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10982-012-9153-2
Mahini, F. and Yahyaei, D. ‘The Influence of existentialism on teaching methods’ (2017) 9(3) International Journal of Learning and Teaching 354
Emma Jones, Caroline Strevens, Rachel Field and Colin James, ‘International Guidelines for Wellbeing in Legal Education’ (IBA Professional Wellbeing Commission 2023)
