From Practice to the Podium

Over the next several months, many new faculty hires will be transitioning from the world of practice to the start of an academic career.  Just in time, Maryland law professor Sherri Lee Keene (pictured) has posted her manuscript, It Was the Best of Practice, it was the Worst of Practice:  Moving Successfully from the Courtroom to the Classroom.  Here's an excerpt from the introduction:

This article will discuss some of the challenges that experienced attorneys encounter when they move from practice to academia and recommend ways for new professors to bring professional knowledge successfully into classroom teaching. While extensive experience may create the possibility of a barrier between professors and students, it can also create a limitless opportunity for experienced practitioners to teach what they know. Part II of this article will identify and describe the diverse perspectives of legal practitioners and students, as experts and novices respectively. Part III will discuss the many ways in which a professor's assumptions about what students know and how students will perform can lead to gaps in instruction and missed teaching opportunities, as well as poor working relationships. Part IV will suggest ways in which professors can work to bridge the gap between themselves and their students by adjusting their expectations and adapting their teaching methods to better accommodate student needs. Part V will recommend that professors embrace the opportunity to "teach in the gap" and consider the many ways they can use their practical experience to connect to students professionally. By connecting classroom instruction to real life examples, professors can raise student awareness of professional expectations and get students excited about what it really means to practice law. 

I enjoyed reading the article, and I think you will, too — especially if you will soon be joining a law school faculty.