[Open Book] is something different and really worth recommending. Here are a few reasons why I would love my students to read the book and its online content.
First, the book imparts fabulous advice on why law profs give exams and how those exams directly connect to law practice and the whole law school endeavor.
Second, the website has so many practice exams (in all of the core areas) with marked up answers that explain the reasons behind the prof’s thinking and evaluation of the answers. This is an incredible help: students learn what worked on the exam and why.
Third, the joy that the authors take from teaching and the practice of law leaps off the page — it’s so clear how wonderful they are as teachers and mentors. Their enthusiasm and respect for what lawyers do is obvious and inspiring. The pedagogy will appeal to law professors, and it is an entertaining read, nicely illustrated. The website is full of useful content (those practice exams and feedback I talked about).
Getting Ready for Finals
It is the middle of October and not too soon to think about final exams. Law students at Brooklyn Law School can get help on preparing for and taking exams using the BLS Library’s Open Book: Succeeding on Exams From the First Day of Law School by NYU Law School Professor Barry Friedman and Harvard Law School Professor John C.P. Goldberg. Connecting the dots of the law school experience, it explains how what takes place in class relates to both final exams and the practice of law. Accompanying a book with a website of premium-content resources is a very cutting-edge idea. The blog Concurring Opinions says that: