LibGuides: Law School Learning Outcomes: Overview

ABA Standards and Guidance

ABA Standards: Program of Legal Education (2021-22 version)
See Standard
301 - requirement to "establish and publish learning outcomes" to achieve program objectives
302 - required areas for learning outcomes
314 - requirement to use "both formative and summative assessment" to "improve student learning and provide meaningful feedback to students"
315 - requirement for dean and faculty to "conduct ongoing evaluation of the law school's program of legal education, learning outcomes, and assessment methods" and "use the results of this evaluation. . . to improve the curriculum."
Guidance Memo on Standards 301, 302, 314, & 315 (June 2015)
- Shifts "emphasis from what is being taught to what is being learned by the students."
- Explains where learning outcomes must be published (website and publications describing mission and curriculum; for certificates/specialty tracks, where those programs are described; "Learning outcomes for individual courses must be published in the course syllabi."
- Assessment must be "meaningful" and "measure the level of [student] attainment" of learning objectives. "This requires schools to collect evidence that demonstrates the level of attainment."

Learning Outcomes Defined

What are learning outcomes?

"Learning outcomes must consist of clear and concise statements of knowledge that students are expected to acquire, skills students are expected to develop, and values that they are expected to understand and integrate into their professional lives" (2015 ABA Guidance Memo, emphasis added).

"Learner-centered objectives focus on what students will learn, rather than what will be covered or what the teacher will do in class" (Schwartz, Sparrow and Hess 68). They need to be concrete, i.e., measurable (id. 39).

Process Overview

Note what students are learning in your class. In light of our educational objectives (see the law school's mission statement and learning outcomes), make a list of the most important things a student should know, be able to do, or value after completing your class (adapted from Shaw and VanZandt 58).
Phrase these items in the form of learning objectives: clear and concise, measurable, student-focused outcomes that demonstrate learning.
Assess student learning as defined by the outcomes.
Close the loop, applying what you learn from your assessment to improve student learning.

Law School Learning Outcomes: Overview

ABA Standards and Guidance

Learning Outcomes Defined

Process Overview

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