Requirements and standards of Street law programme
Suggestion about terms:
- Minimum requirements should be existed to recognize the organization as a Street Law clinic.
- Standards of the Street Law Clinic mean such requirements which guarantees the quality of its work (or services provided by the clinic).
Please rate each of the proposed standards in one of three ways. The standard should be required for street law-type clinics, they are recommended for clinics (but are optional) or they are not necessary for the clinics and should not be included in the list.
1. Requirements for curriculum and lesson content
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
|
The topic is appropriate (i.e., close to the interest, culture, and mentality of the target groups). |
|||
| The topic is substantive and relates to important ideas. | |||
|
The topic is current. |
|||
| The ordering of topics/lessons is coherent and meaningful. | |||
| The curriculum builds skills. | |||
| The lessons and curriculum outline describe the required human and materials resources. | |||
| The curriculum content is both doable and challenging (i.e., rigorous) for the students | |||
| *The program develops materials to support law student training and lessons in the community setting. |
2. Requirement for teachers/trainers
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| The teacher/trainer has an understanding of the street law mission. | |||
| The teacher/trainer understands and can use interactive methods, and implements them. | |||
| Training materials are available and the teacher/trainer has experience in preparing and using them. | |||
| The teacher/trainer has participated in trainings focusing on communication skills. | |||
| The teacher/trainer has the necessary legal knowledge. | |||
| The teacher/trainer has a psychological disposition appropriate for street law. | |||
| The teacher/trainer has skills in developing a curriculum/syllabus/ course plan. | |||
| *The teacher/trainer reflects on his/her practice and is also evaluated by students/participants/colleagues. | |||
| Where appropriate the age of law student trainers is matched to that of the target group |
3. Requirements for teaching methods, including supervision
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| *Methods and methodologies support and strengthen the democratic process. | |||
| Teaching methodologies may include small group work, role plays, case studies, debates, critical thinking exercises, brainstorming, opinion polls, games, hypotheticals, question and answer, field trips, simulations, ranking exercises, taking a stand, mock trials, drama, use of resource persons and other interactive work. |
|||
| Teaching methodologies are all-inclusive, interactive and differentiated. | |||
| Teaching methods are clear and understandable. | |||
| Teaching methods are student oriented and engage students in active work. | |||
| Teaching methods are appropriate to the learner group. | |||
| Teaching methods initiate interest in the topic. | |||
| Teaching methods help maintain an engaging pace of activities. | |||
| Teaching methods foster skills, knowledge and values development in learners. | |||
| Teaching methods involve ongoing monitoring and feedback of learner experiences. | |||
| Various teaching methods are balanced. | |||
| Teaching methods are humanistic and any suppression by each other is impossible. | |||
| Teaching methods are oriented to and include self-evaluation. | |||
| Law students participate in regular meetings and debriefings with their trainer or supervisor (Recommendation – weekly). |
|||
| Law students’ work is supervised within the community setting a minimum of twice during the semester. |
4. Requirements for law students
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| Law school students participating in a street law-type clinic are no younger than in their second year of law school. | |||
| Law students are trained in the use of interactive teaching methodologies and implement them. (Recommendation - for a minimum of four hours) |
|||
| Law students are trained in the preparation of lesson plans and are able to prepare lesson plans. | |||
| Law students teach a minimum of ten lessons in a community setting over the course of the street law-type clinic. | |||
| Law students organize mock trials and special events with learners. | |||
| Law students teach the same students within these community settings over the course of the clinic. | |||
| Law students teach a total of 20 lessons a year. |
5. Requirements for student assessment
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| Law student and pupil assessment is regular. | |||
| Assessment methods used on law students and pupils are complementary and holistic. | |||
| Law student assessment includes individual work, preparation for giving lessons, participation in the law school seminar, performing lessons in the community setting. | |||
| Assessment methods are based on the knowledge, skill and attitudes of law students and pupils. | |||
| Law students participate in an evaluative process of their work. | |||
| Assessment methods includes feedback from law students themselves, teacher/trainer, peer students, pupils. |
6. Requirements for documentation
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| Documentation for Street Law Programs is for: (single vote for all recipients below) Administrators of street law-type clinics University administrators Administrators in community settings, such as principals and prison supervisors. Documentation techniques include:(vote individually) |
|||
| Scenarios of individual street law lessons, using written and visual recordings | |||
| List of participating community-based agencies, such as schools, and law student participants | |||
| List of community-based learners, such as high school students | |||
|
Supervision records for law students |
|||
| Letters of communication between the street law-type clinics and community-based organizations, donors and others | |||
| Opinions of the program | |||
| Students’ records about problems, obstacles, achievements, new ideas came from their lessons and recommendation for program and curriculum development |
7. Teaching/training requirements for the environment
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| Agency to sponsor the program, such as law school, law student association, NGO | |||
| Trainers well qualified to teach using interactive methods | |||
| Teachers interested to receive training in street law-type methods | |||
| Community-based learners, such as secondary students, adult learners in various settings, such as prisons, shelters, churches, adult education course, or other community settings in which adults are gathered | |||
| Trainers with legal knowledge | |||
| Receptive administrators in community-based agencies | |||
| Law school seminars for law students include a practical component. | |||
| *Materials and methodologies are made available to other members of the legal and education communities. |
8. Program evaluation
|
Require |
Recommend |
Eliminate |
|
| Formative evaluation: Regular feedback received from clients (including staff and administrator of the programs in which clients are organized, e.g., teachers, school and prison administrators, etc.) and law students |
|||
| Feedback reviewed and discussed by law students and their supervisor. | |||
| Summative evaluation: Takes places each half year or at the conclusion of a clinic program |
|||
| Involves input from supervisors, law students, Clients | |||
| Qualitative and quantitative techniques include feedback forms and questionnaires; interviews; focus group discussions. | |||
| Independent impact evaluation: Seeks to determine outcomes on law students and clients |
|||
| May involve public opinion surveys | |||
| Is conducted by independent evaluator or researcher. |