One class down
Earlier today, we got an email about signing up for spring semester classes.I feel like I just got to Tufts and it can’t really be time to pick spring semester classes already. Then again, so much has happened: I have grown as a person and made strong relationships. Today was also the last day of my half-semester class.
The class, “Introduction to Legal Reasoning,” has ended up being one of my favorite classes and I am so glad I took it in my first semester. It is a Faculty Seminar, which means that your professor is your academic adviser and only your advising group is in the class. At the beginning of the semester, the professor told us that the class would not be a law class, rather, it would be a class that uses the law to teach you how to think. To be honest, I was skeptical. How can someone claim they’ll teach me how to think?
There wasn’t a set syllabus, a list of textbooks to get, or readings to do each week. I like planning and being certain about what or what not to expect. For once, I decided to just go with the flow and see what happens.
We have been meeting every Monday and Wednesday afternoon. True to fact, we did not discuss the law in itself. We, however, used the law and applied it to different circumstances. Sometimes, we would have legal precedence and try to decipher what the court and jury were thinking when they made the decisions they did. Most times, our professor would bring us hypothetical situations and we’d find relevant law and try to use it to make, present, and argue our side of the case.
If there’s one thing I will take away is “don’t limit your mind.” It was easy to think of a set of opinions and try stick to that. As I have learnt, there always is another side to the argument. I am a much better speaker now than I was 7 weeks ago. I can speak in front of people and say something concise and compelling but still remain cognizant that my argument has its weaknesses. Maybe the class did teach me how to think after all. Some classes definitely require a syllabus and planning, but it felt good to have spontaneity in our classes.
I cannot wait to see what my future classes at Tufts have in store!
Oh, and look who our professor brought to the last class!? Milo! (refer to photo) Midterms calls for some much needed paw-therapy.