Inclusive Socratic Teaching
About the Author
Table of Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Legal Education’s Curricular Conformity
PART I
1. Socratic Classrooms Dominate Legal Education’s Curricular Core
2. Sustained Calls for Curricular Reforms
3. Students Reveal That We Should Not Fear Curricular Change
4. The Legal Profession Faces Symbiotic Struggles
PART II
5. The Imperative of Inclusive Socratic Classrooms
6. Pivoting Away from Problematic Socratic Performances
7. Identifying the Shared Values That Shape Socratic Classrooms
8. Measuring Effective, Inclusive, and Equitable Socratic Classrooms
Conclusion: Raising the Floor on Legal Education
Appendix A: Essay Exam Assessment Criteria
Appendix B: Additional Resources
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Reviews
"Courageously exposing the harms caused by rote adherence to the case method and the Socratic method in legal education, Jamie Abrams sets forth essential new approaches that embrace inclusive Socratic techniques and experiment with critical pedagogies. Challenging teachers and leaders to democratize legal classrooms through fairer, more effective, and more innovative methods, Inclusive Socratic Teaching is a must-read for anyone who wishes to dismantle the unnecessary yet unrelenting hierarchies of the law school classroom."—Danielle M. Conway, Dean and Donald J. Farage Professor of Law, Penn State Dickinson Law
"Inclusive Socratic Teaching moves legal education from critiquing its traditional pedagogies to transforming them. It invites faculty, staff, leaders, and accreditors to find synergistic ways to strengthen our classrooms and our institutions. This book is a timely and productive springboard for discussion and reflection within and across our profession."—Angela Onwuachi-Willig, Dean and Ryan Roth Gallo Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law
"Expanding on the consistent critiques voiced by scholars, educators, and advocates, Abrams exposes the shortcomings of the traditional hierarchical Socratic method and proposes tangible reforms in legal education that, with minimal disruption, can radically transform praxes within the legal academy."—Aníbal Rosario Lebrón, Associate Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School
"Inclusive Socratic Teaching inspires legal educators to channel Socrates, exercise intellectual humility, and ask a powerful question: How can we help all our students—especially our naturally quiet, introverted, shy, socially anxious, first-generation, or marginalized ones—amplify their advocacy voices authentically in our classrooms? Our profession needs these diverse voices. Abrams equips us with practical tools to cultivate a culture of belonging by empathetically teaching all students how to navigate intellectually complex Socratic dialogues successfully."—Heidi K. Brown, Associate Dean for Upper Level Writing, New York Law School, and author of The Flourishing Lawyer: A Multi-Dimensional Approach to Performance and Well-Being