Study Groups
Don’t join one—not if you want to get any studying done. Studying in groups is fun, but studying isn’t supposed to be fun and it isn’t supposed to be social. That studying in groups is so palatable should tell you something.
You know how you prefer the elliptical machine to the treadmill? Thats because it’s easier and doesn’t burn as many calories.
You know how you love having muffins for breakfast? That’s because muffins are cake, not a legitimate breakfast food.
The reason studying in groups is fun is that it’s not studying.
But what harm do study groups do? They eat up your time. Every hour you spend “studying” in a study group (i.e., gossiping about your classmates and criticizing your professors) is an hour you could have spent actually studying the law.
Has anybody reading this actually gotten any work done in a study group? Has anybody learned a single thing except for how useless study groups are? I suspect not.
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February 6th, 2007 at 10:12 am
I think you’re missing an important aspect of law school. If the law was nothing more than the regurgitation of case facts and who was the winner, you might be right. A study group, however, gives you the opportunity to exchange ideas and theories with others. It also helps develop and important skill every lawyer needs; the ability to beat the shit out of the other lawyer until they see it your way.
February 6th, 2007 at 11:51 am
It depends on the type of knowledge you’re trying to acquire. If you need to memorize a ton of declarative knowledge (e.g. dates, facts, outcomes of cases) then you’re better off as an individual.
If you’re learning procedural knowledge (e.g. understanding complex math, solving a logic puzzle) then having someone to explain things to you can be faster than struggling to understand the math textbook alone.
For the most part, much of academia is the simple collection of declarative knowledge, in which case self-study reigns supreme. For the times when the exchange of ideas is beneficial (as per Chuck’s comment above), a group meeting may be the optimal use of time.
February 6th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
The best use of study groups in my experience is finding where
gaps in your knowledge are within a particular area/concept. This is most useful when you don’t even know that you have these gaps in knowledge. Regarding pure “studying” (read: memorization) I agree that study groups may hinder more than help.
Finally though, there is no more law school like moment then having an extending discussion on the actual holding/meaning/application of a given concept from a case between multiple members of your study group. Your analytical (read:exam taking) skills will be much stronger as a result.
February 6th, 2007 at 4:40 pm
I’ve never found my classmates to have anything of any value to offer me. I don’t have time for study groups. What I’ve seen is that when listening to their discussions or overhearing comments prior to exams made me think I had something wrong or missing from my understanding, they were the ones with the problems.
February 7th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Study groups are now a distant, yet ugly memory. I never found them particularly useful, usually just another way of increasing my anxiety about gaps in my knowledge.
Just read your “About” page and had a great laugh! That’s the law school I remember!
February 7th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
“Study”?
Ricky, what kind of hell are you putting yourself through? Stop kidding yourself and move to vegas to become a professional gambler/writer about your dog.
February 8th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
STUDY GROUPS, I firmly believe, can HELP some PEOPLE. I admit, there is a certain element of socialization that can GET overwhelming if you are BETTER suited to a quiet, isolated study locale (i.e. AT home); if you remain dilligent, though, study groups can be much more than mere CHATTING.
February 12th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
Nice stuff.
February 12th, 2007 at 12:26 pm
HEY RICKY,
IVE BEEN YOUR DAD’S PARTNER FOR 15 YEARS. HE ACTUALLY HAS BEEN IN A COURTROOM AS AN OBSERVER DURING THAT TIME! HE DOES READ A LOT OF MEMOS. I AM A LITIGATOR. I READ LOTS OF MEMOS TOO. AS A MATTER OF FACT, YOUR DAD AND I READ A LOT OF THE SAME MEMOS. SO DO OUR OTHER PARTNERS.
YOUR SITE HAS GIVEN ME AN IDEA: IT WOULD BE SO MUCH MORE EFFICIENT IF WE HAD ONE READER IN THE OFFICE TO COVER ALL INTERNAL MEMOS. NO, MAYBE WE NEED 3: ONE LIBERAL, ON CONSERVATIVE AND ONE WHO SITS ON THE FENCE. THE REMAIINING PARTNERS COULD GIVE THEIR PROXY IN ADVANCE TO THEIR RESPECTIVE REPRESENTATIVE AND WE COULD SAVE TONS OF TIME.
THE ONLY PROBLEM I FORESEE IS THE FENCE SITTER WOULD GET THE MOST PROXIES. MAYBE WE CAN GET SOME PRACTICAL INSIGHT FROM YOUR EFFORTS! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!
February 12th, 2007 at 3:52 pm
Hi Rick,
I posted my reactions to your comments on study groups on CALI’s Pre-Law Blog:
http://calis_pre-law_blog.classcaster.org/blog/pre-law_discussions/2007/02/12/lawschoolblogger_blogs_comments_on_study_groups
“Rick Lax, DePaul law student; law school blogger; and aspiring author, has some pretty good posts on his lawschoolblogger.com blog. Among others, I like his comments on study groups.
I agree that for general studying, study groups don’t work well if your friends are any fun at all to be around.
But I will say that study groups do work especially for group practice exams. That is, if everyone agrees to sit down for an hour or two and simulate a test environment and, when completed, to go over and compare answers. “