45min
Legal technology skills—from widely-used tools like MS Word, Excel, Acrobat, practice management systems, document management platforms, and e-discovery software, to emerging technologies like generative AI—are crucial for today's law students. But, given the rapid pace of innovation, instructors also need to prepare students for technologies that don’t yet exist. In this session, we explore practices for designing effective, interactive, simulation-based exercises that help students master current legal tech and equip them to confidently approach future technological changes. We'll share activities designed not only to build immediate skills but also to encourage students to proactively take charge of their own ongoing professional development. This includes teaching students how to strategically leverage generative AI and other resources to enhance—rather than replace—their capacity to learn, adapt, and innovate, making them even more valuable in an industry that may be automating lower-level tasks usually used to train new lawyers. Attendees will leave with actionable exercises, practical teaching tips, and strategies to cultivate a mindset of continuous, self-directed technological growth among their students.
[This could probably be broken into two 15-30 min. sessions: teaching with simulations and training students for technology that doesn't exist yet. I haven't invited any co-presenters, but I have several in mind I could invite.]