What sets grades apart? Forum

[dj_roomba]

Everybody seems to be studying a good amount. It seems like most people understand the concepts. After all, law school topics aren't generally difficult (yet).

I feel like extra studying won't be much help (right now at least).
I decided to stay in tonight to study but i realized there really isn't much to do. Reading my supps and notes again, everything seems pretty straightforward. My classmates seem to agree that the topics aren't difficult. So far, keeping up with reading + going to lecture seems like it's enough to help us understand.

So what exactly sets the A students apart?
Exam taking skills?

[Lacepiece23]

Everybody seems to be studying a good amount. It seems like most people understand the concepts. After all, law school topics aren't generally difficult (yet).

I feel like extra studying won't be much help (right now at least).
I decided to stay in tonight to study but i realized there really isn't much to do. Reading my supps and notes again, everything seems pretty straightforward. My classmates seem to agree that the topics aren't difficult. So far, keeping up with reading + going to lecture seems like it's enough to help us understand.

So what exactly sets the A students apart?
Exam taking skills?

Yes

[Tiago Splitter]

Not everybody will have the BLL down cold. If possible, it's really helpful to figure out what is most likely to be on the test so you can really focus your exam prep when the time comes.

[Danger Zone]

Not everybody will have the BLL down cold. If possible, it's really helpful to figure out what is most likely to be on the test so you can really focus your exam prep when the time comes.

And even those that do might not spot every issue, or might not analyze every issue they spot in the level of detail that the prof wants to see.

[banjo]

So it's October. Should we still be reading, taking notes, and synthesizing? Or is it time to read through the E&Es, start on outlines, etc? When do people generally stop going out (sure hasn't happened yet...)?

[Holly Golightly]

So it's October. Should we still be reading, taking notes, and synthesizing? Or is it time to read through the E&Es, start on outlines, etc? When do people generally stop going out (sure hasn't happened yet...)?

haha, I didn't stop going out or start outlining until Thanksgiving 1L. I would advise no outlining until November at the earliest.

[Tiago Splitter]

So it's October. Should we still be reading, taking notes, and synthesizing? Or is it time to read through the E&Es, start on outlines, etc? When do people generally stop going out (sure hasn't happened yet...)?

I never really stopped going out. My general advice is to read all the cases, go to all the classes, and pay attention. A good time to go through the E&E is when you finish the relevant section of the syllabus. You can outline then too, but I prefer to see the big picture when doing my outlines so I didn't really start them until November. This isn't as important in a class like Civ Pro, where you can effectively outline personal jurisdiction without knowing anything about choice of law.

[Pokemon]

Everybody seems to be studying a good amount. It seems like most people understand the concepts. After all, law school topics aren't generally difficult (yet).

I feel like extra studying won't be much help (right now at least).
I decided to stay in tonight to study but i realized there really isn't much to do. Reading my supps and notes again, everything seems pretty straightforward. My classmates seem to agree that the topics aren't difficult. So far, keeping up with reading + going to lecture seems like it's enough to help us understand.

So what exactly sets the A students apart?
Exam taking skills?

Attention to detail, overall understanding, writing skills, and luck.

Attention to detail can make a difference when spotting exam issues. I got median in crim law exam, because I missed part of a question.

Overall understanding means knowing BLL really well, knowing the professor really well, knowing how each element fits with other elements. Not all students understand this equally. Overall understanding also means speed since you can make 1+1=2 on the exam faster than the other guy.

Writing skills: I got median in Con Law, and I think a big part of it was because the exam was written so badly. I think I hit all the issues the professor wanted, but it was a huge time crunch, and english not being my first language, my syntax was bizarre to say the least.

Luck: I got a terrible grade in one class and I will never know what went wrong. Talked to professor afterwards, and he kind of had no explanation (i had mentioned the things he wanted me to mention). I think he was in a bad mood, or maybe did not like something about my exam, or maybe thought I copy-pasted, or something along those lines and it happened. Going back to my crim law exam which I mention above, I think luck also played a role here. 95 out of 100 times I would not miss part of a question.

[2014]

I've had 3 different teachers tell either the class or me that "everyone spots every issue". Once you accept that there aren't any tricks, it comes down to who is able to best convey that they have mastered it.

Another thing to keep in mind is that they will not read every word that you write, in fact not even close. One of our teachers did a survey of a few peers and found that they spend as little as 4 minutes per test, and on the high end only 10. Knowing that, it really comes down to making your answers well organized so that when they are skimming they see your accuracy rather than your rambling.

[stillwater]

I've had 3 different teachers tell either the class or me that "everyone spots every issue". Once you accept that there aren't any tricks, it comes down to who is able to best convey that they have mastered it.

Another thing to keep in mind is that they will not read every word that you write, in fact not even close. One of our teachers did a survey of a few peers and found that they spend as little as 4 minutes per test, and on the high end only 10. Knowing that, it really comes down to making your answers well organized so that when they are skimming they see your accuracy rather than your rambling.

what your professors told you is patently false. people do miss (a lot of) issues.

[haus]

I thought that the staircase method accepted as the primary grading method.

http://www.concurringopinions.com/archi ... _grad.html

[banjo]

A good time to go through the E&E is when you finish the relevant section of the syllabus.

Today I read the E&E sections on the topics we covered so far and it was really helpful. It's also comforting to see that Glannon talks about the same stuff we're discussing in class (Rule 12(b), 15(a) and 15(c), etc.).

[utlaw2007]

So it's October. Should we still be reading, taking notes, and synthesizing? Or is it time to read through the E&Es, start on outlines, etc? When do people generally stop going out (sure hasn't happened yet...)?

I never really stopped going out. My general advice is to read all the cases, go to all the classes, and pay attention. A good time to go through the E&E is when you finish the relevant section of the syllabus. You can outline then too, but I prefer to see the big picture when doing my outlines so I didn't really start them until November. This isn't as important in a class like Civ Pro, where you can effectively outline personal jurisdiction without knowing anything about choice of law.

This is spot on advice.