GLOBALIZATION: A NEW PARADIGM FOR TEACHING

Andrea L. Johnson
California Western School of Law

1. IMPACT OF GLOBALIZATION
   1. Globalization has impacted the U.S. law school classroom in two ways that bring both challenges and opportunities.
      1. There is greater diversity among foreign students within the student population through growing enrollments in L.L.M. and M.C.L. programs.
      2. Technology allows the classroom experience to extend beyond the four walls of a given institution to connect with experts, other students and faculty using teleconferencing, videoconferencing, and the Internet.
   2. Faculty have the opportunity to make the classroom more dynamic by allowing foreign students to focus on comparative law issues that can be integrated into class discussions, and may provide alternatives to traditional exams.
      1. Most foreign students are already lawyers in their home country. This gives them a point of reference. They may also be returning to their home countries to work for nationals or governments doing business with U.S. companies. Many students want to understand the comparative law issues.
      2. There are practical realities such as language and cultural barriers that challenge foreign students in understanding U.S. laws and principles. They often need some point of reference. Difficult names and the varying proficiency in oral and written communication also requires the professor to consider alternative forms of assessment.

2. UNDERSTANDING THE CLASSROOM DYNAMIC
   1. Understand your audience by knowing something about your students. At the beginning of the semester, ask students to complete index cards with contact information, phonetic pronunciation of names, program, interest and home city/state/country, and background in the subject matter.
      1. Avoid the temptation not to call on foreign students because you cannot pronounce their names. Don’t try to learn their names before class. Some times it is best to acknowledge the difficulty and ask for assistance.
      2. If the size of the class permits, allow students to introduce themselves and identify their home country. Anticipate potential conflicts among students by laying some ground rules up front about professionalism and respect in disagreeing or relating to one another.
   2. Students seem to be more affected by current events and have a greater need to “vent” or challenge traditional notions.
      1. Students are becoming more “activist” and aggressive about their opinions. They also are more conservative than faculty.
      2. Tension is higher among students during an international crisis in some areas of the country, particularly in areas with military personnel.

3. DISTANCE LEARNING CASE STUDY MODULES
   1. California Western School of Law and HELP Institute in Malaysia
      1. Equipment: Teleconference (speaker phone), Videotape and Internet
      2. Course: J.D. students in Telecommunications Law in U.S. and Masters students in Business Organizations in Malaysia; Module took about 4 weeks.
      3. Exercise: Negotiate a joint venture agreement between foreign nationals and a U.S. company seeking to build a videoconference facility in Malaysia. Students are paired in teams and act as subject matter experts. Faculty conducted lectures on legal issues in the U.S. and Malaysia.
      4. Lessons Learned: Videotape introductions persons on the front end so they have a face. Require interaction via email. Allow at least two real-time audio conversations.
   2. California Western School of Law and Chicago-Kent College of Law
      1. Equipment: Teleconference (speaker phone), Videoconference, Videotape and Internet
      2. Course: J.D. students in Telecommunications Law and J.D., L.L.M. and MCL students in International Telecommunications Law. Module took about 4 weeks.
      3. Exercise: Negotiate a joint venture agreement between foreign nationals and a U.S. company doing business in Malaysia to build a videoconference facility. Students are paired to teams as subject matter experts. Faculty conducted lectures on legal issues in the U.S. and Malaysia.
      4. Lessons Learned: Build in class time for both lecture, class discussion and small group discussions. Require interaction via email and discussion lists good way to share thoughts. Assignments sent to email address where they get an automatic confirmation and separate from other email.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT PROFESSOR ANDREA JOHNSON AT AJOHNSON@CWSL.EDU (619) 525-1474

REFERENCE SITES:
Andrea L. Johnson, "The Global Classroom: Creating a Virtual University" (published on Harvard Law School Forum-website) (Fall 1998)

Andrea L. Johnson, "Creating a Virtual University: A Practical Guide for Southeast Asia" (1998) Paper Presented Asian Media Info. & Comm. Ctr. (AMIC) Bangkok, Thailand (On File)

Andrea L. Johnson, “Distance Learning and Information Technology: Working Towards an International Model,” 30 Law and Technology Journal 1 (1997)

Andrea Johnson, "Distance Learning and Technology in Legal Education: 21St Century Experiment" (lead article), 7 Albany Law & Technology Journal 214 (Spring 1997)