Presentation to third Future Ed conference, NYLS.

1. Standardized Clients and SIMPLE
(SIMulated Professional Learning
Environment): learning
professionalism through simulated
practice
Karen Barton, Strathclyde University Law School
John Garvey, University of New Hampshire Law School
Paul Maharg, Northumbria University Law School

2. Daniel Webster Scholar Honors Program
 Two year Bar practicum
 Training in professional skills and judgment through simulated,
clinical and externship settings
 Exposure to numerous fields, including real estate, business, and
litigation is offered.
 Instead of a two-day bar exam, the program provides a two-year,
comprehensive exam in conjunction with the training received.
 Students who complete the program are certified as having passed
the New Hampshire Bar examination, subject only to passing the
Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) and the
New Hampshire character and fitness requirements.
 See: http://law.unh.edu/assets/pdf/johngarvey-article-
newmodel.pdf
Karen Barton, John Garvey & Paul Maharg 2

3.  The Daniel Webster Scholar Honors Program
 "...fuses instruction and assessment in the most
intimate and integrated way that I have ever seen.
Two years of it. It’s two years of what we actually
recommended in [the Carnegie Report], integrated
in such a way that truly instruction and assessment
are indistinguishable.”
 — Lloyd Bond
Karen Barton, John Garvey & Paul Maharg 3

4. Standardized
standardized client initiative
Clients
 We train lay people to simulate clients, and do two things well:
 Discuss their case with the (trainee) lawyer in a way that is
standard across the cohort of students/lawyers that the SC meets
 Assess the client-facing skills of the lawyer.
 Initiative is developed from medical education, now extensively used
in final exam ‘OSCE’ stations in UK medical schools
 A correlational study in 2006 concluded that use of SCs in legal
education was as reliable and valid as tutor assessments
 We make what the client thinks important in the most salient way for
the student: a high-stakes assessment where most of the grade is
given by the client
 Now developed by Maharg et al for SRA Qualifying Lawyers’ Transfer
Scheme in England & Wales
Karen Barton, John Garvey & Paul Maharg 4

5. Standardized
feasibility? cost? impact?
Clients
Progress...?
 Six clients trained and used already in a comparison of Webster
scholars with newly-admitted Bar members.
 Used twice per year for interviews with Webster Scholars, and as
clients and witnesses elsewhere.
Feasible…?
 Very: lots of experience out there in Strathclyde, Northumbria.
Refresher training needed for SCs, but no high-maintenance
Cost…?
 Training of SC trainer + SCs; payment of SCs.
 SC documentation is freely available under CC:
Karen Barton, John Garvey & Paul Maharg 5

6. Standardized
sample feedback
Clients
Impact…?
 Big: on students, on ethical performance, practice of skills within
professional value contexts; formative and high-stakes assessment.
 Also on regulatory bodies, eg Law Society of Scotland, SRA.
‘When I reflect on my law school tenure, the standardized client
experience was the most educational aspect of my legal training. It
set a foundation for me to begin the practice of law. As a new lawyer,
I feel confident meeting with a client because I know I can rely on the
interviewing and counseling skills I learned through the process.’
-- Webster Scholar
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7. SIMPLE
What is SIMPLE?
SIMulated Professional Learning Environment enables
students to engage in online simulations of professional
practice. Its special pedagogy is based on transactional
learning:
active learning
through performance in authentic transactions
involving reflection in & on learning,
deep collaborative learning, and
holistic or process learning,
with relevant professional assessment
that includes ethical standards
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8. correspondence file
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9. SIMPLE
what are we assessing in SIMPLE?
 Professionalism and ethical performance
 Skilled performance to benchmarked levels
 Substantive knowledge of law
 Procedural knowledge
 Many other categories of assessable experience
 Purpose of assessment:
 Formative (feedback and feedforward)
 Summative
 Think of a social space where both workspace, learning space &
assessment space co-exist, eg, between master & apprentice.
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10. SIMPLE
how are we assessing in SIMPLE?
1. Discrete tasks, eg drafting,
letter-writing, research (Estate Planning)
2. Whole file + performative skill (Personal Injury)
3. Tasks + whole file (Real Estate)
4. Tasks + file + performative skill (Litigation)
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11. SIMPLE
feasibility? cost? impact?
Feasible…?
 Very: lots of experience out there in Strathclyde, Northumbria, ANU.
Once sims are created using the SIMPLE Toolset, easy to maintain.
Cost…?
 Development of sims; learning support for students
 SIMPLE is open-source and freely available – there is technical
support (funded by CALI) till June 2011
 SIMPLE blueprints are freely available under CC licences
 guidance documentation is freely available under CC:
Impact…?
 Big: on students, on ethical performance, practice of skills within
professional value contexts; formative and high-stakes assessment;
transactional learning; learning by doing (Dewey)
Karen Barton, John Garvey & Paul Maharg 11

12. SIMPLE
feedback
‘I found the whole experience to be extremely worthwhile. I believe
it was as close as students will get to experiencing the ‘real thing’
before we commence our traineeships. It certainly taught us the
importance of fact gathering before jumping in and trying to find a
solution.’
‘[…] if we had thought a little harder we could have minimized the
number of letters we sent, by requesting all relevant information
form a person in one go, rather than having to continually request
further details. This was particularly true of our correspondence
with [the client], and in real life I suspect that a client would get a bit
impatient if he was constantly harassed for more evidence. I did feel
that we all lacked a little bit of experience in such matters; knowing
what to ask for and from whom, and I am confident that this exercise
Karen Barton, John Garvey & Paul Maharg 12 has helped us in that regard.’

13. SIMPLE
Converging SCs + SIMPLE at UNH
Process:
1. SCs role-play client (or others)
2. SCs remain in role throughout SIMPLE sim
3. Lawyers take instructions from client
4. Comms via video conferencing & cell phone
Assessment:
1. Formative & high stakes
2. Creation of body of professional work by students.
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