Susan Bryant, Elliott Milstein & Ann Shalleck, Transforming the Education of Lawyers: The Theory and Practice of Clinical Pedagogy

This book examines how students are taught during their clinic experiences. In chapter 9, the authors set out a three-part supervision theory. The three-part supervision theory contains connected developmental processes that: teach students to be lawyers in their representation of clients; provide a structured method for viewing developments in client representation and in learning; and allow supervisors to choose to tailor supervision to guide each student’s development.

Supervision requires consideration of both client needs and student learning. By paying attention to growth in students’ representation of clients and their learning, supervisors are better situated to shape supervision to ensure that the two goals of client needs and student learning are aligned with each other, working in tandem. To do so, supervisors should use three frames for analyzing, planning, and shaping supervisory activity. The first frame is the legal matter. This requires consideration of how supervision throughout a case or project advances both the client’s needs and student learning. Second, supervisors should ensure that students can encounter a mix of student cases or projects and experiences. Third, supervisors must frame the matter and the overall clinical experience for individual supervision meetings.

To effectively determine the method of supervision for each student, supervisors must consider three guideposts: the capacities of each student to act on behalf of clients and to learn effectively, the evaluation of ways to reach the goals for each student and attending to time. The authors set out several questions to help supervisors understand the factors affecting student development.  Some questions supervisors can use include:

• Are we confident in our judgements about the full range of student capacities for representing clients and learning?
• Have we considered whether learning disabilities have influenced behaviours we see or distorted our judgements about causes?
• Do we understand the relationship between the student and the client?
• What assumptions has the student made and how might they affect the client?
• How might cultural differences operate?
• Are other factors affecting a particular student, including the relationship between student and teacher, the other commitments in the student’s life, or particular problems a student is facing?
• How does our relationship with a student affect our assessments?
• How might our reactions, values, or personality affect the student?
• Have differences along axes of identity influenced the relationship?

Susan Bryant, Elliott Milstein & Ann Shalleck, Transforming the Education of Lawyers: The Theory and Practice of Clinical Pedagogy (USA: Carolina Academic Press, 2017) ch 9.