0L Q : How important is it to read ahead? Forum

[crossem]

I feel like I am doing well by just staying with the syllabus, and outlining and re-outlining as I do to get a solid level of understanding.

Is the advantage of added practice on future topics worth it? "It" for me would mean a significantly higher hourly work load, since my professors explain everything quite well and it does take me some time to synthesize supplements/my reading/professor's.

All input is valuable!

[DoubleChecks]

I feel like I am doing well by just staying with the syllabus, and outlining and re-outlining as I do to get a solid level of understanding.

Is the advantage of added practice on future topics worth it? "It" for me would mean a significantly higher hourly work load, since my professors explain everything quite well and it does take me some time to synthesize supplements/my reading/professor's.

All input is valuable!

Huh? What did you want to do?

If you want to work a lot harder to read ahead, but feel like you're already doing well in class, then I say no...not very important to read ahead at all.

[mrloblaw]

Hell, I had trouble staying only reasonably far behind.

[Kilpatrick]

You shouldn't be reading at all if you're a 0l

[quiver]

I read ahead first semester of 1L, didn't read ahead second semester. Same grades both semesters.

[bartleby]

I like skimming my readings for the day, taking notes, and then really re-reading the parts that the prof emphasized. I find it helpful for my harder class (K's). For Civ Pro, I just do the reading. For Torts, I hardly even read the casebook - just E&E's cause my professor is a joker.

[JCougar]

My best grade ever came from a class where I didn't open my casebook until 5 weeks left.

Law is mostly common sense. The biggest danger is not failing to read...it's over-thinking things.

Getting an awesome grade in a course you barely studied for is not all that unusual. The key is to have a good outline and copy as much of it down as possible.

[shock259]

I've finished the reading for the semester, but I have not yet determined how helpful it will be.

[cinephile]

I like reading ahead a couple weeks at a time since it lets me have a week off from reading every other week. Having down time's important to me.

[Knuckles]

Some professors (all but one of mine this semester) will not give you the option of reading ahead; we weren't given a reading list, so you have to stay tuned until the end of class when they pluck their assignments from the case materials. I don't know how common this is, but I wouldn't bank on being able to read ahead.

[Fedorov91]

People tried to read ahead in my contracts class. They tried to use readings from Thursday in the Tuesday class and the prof said we will get to that case on Thursday.

[094320]

..

[JazzOne]

People tried to read ahead in my contracts class. They tried to use readings from Thursday in the Tuesday class and the prof said we will get to that case on Thursday.

Reading ahead =/= bragging about reading ahead

[TatteredDignity]

My best grade ever came from a class where I didn't open my casebook until 5 weeks left.

Law is mostly common sense. The biggest danger is not failing to read...it's over-thinking things.

Getting an awesome grade in a course you barely studied for is not all that unusual. The key is to have a good outline and copy as much of it down as possible.

[MC Southstar]

Just stop it.

[crossem]

Thanks for all the help.

I think I will start to move ahead on one of my classes, mostly because no one has said they regretted it.

Happy or not, I will have a better idea of what works for me after exams.

[NotMyRealName09]

Don't read ahead. That's like reading ahead to calculus when you are still on functions in algebra. When you are done reading for next class, stop it. That wasn't a joke comment someone made. I think you will not do yourself any good, and you may end up confusing yourself because you have not yet mastered the material you haven't yet covered in class. Once you get to the material you read ahead, it will not be fresh in your head because time has passed since you read it.

You would be far better off using your extra time to re-read what you already read than moving ahead. I'm of the school that the last thing you read should be what you will discuss in your very next class. To each their own, but you are just making things harder on yourself when things are difficult enough.

[shoeshine]

Killself for even considering this.



Actually nevermind. You will fit right in during law school.

[Renzo]

I've finished the reading for the semester, but I have not yet determined how helpful it will be.

[DoubleChecks]

I actually agree with the poster that said something about re-reading versus reading ahead. If you are dead set on wasting time, MUCH better imo to re-read the material you're on and understanding it (and outlining) than to read ahead.

[CanadianWolf]

Depends upon how you learn best. If reading ahead helps, then do it. Some like to know where they are headed.

[Sandro]

I didnt really read at all this week and it felt good.

[JazzOne]

I didnt really read at all this week semester and it felt good.

FYP

[traehekat]

I mean, I guess you could read ahead? You are either going to read it all or you are not, and so it doesn't really make a difference when you do it. The downside to reading ahead is unless you brief the cases (which is probably a waste of time), then you likely won't remember anything from the reading if you actually get called on. I didn't care what I sounded like in class, but I know some people do.

I dunno, reading ahead just sounds like a stupid gunner thing to do. There is no beneficial point to it and you just sound like a douche if you ever actually mention you have read ahead for class.

[BlueDiamond]

I read ahead in most of my classes at the start of the semester. By the seventh week I started reading day by day. By the tenth week I read High Court Case Summaries for 3 classes and actually still do the reading for Property. First semester 1L so will let you know if that worked for me in two to three months