Senior Legal Practice Course Lecturer, Tom Serby has published an article in the Liverpool Law Review which considers the benefits of collaborative online learning. The article describes the replacement of a 'traditionally taught' law of probate course (lectures and workshops/tutorials) with an online collaborative learning exercise which uses simulation and role-play. Known as a Transactional Learning Project (TLP), the project, which arose from Tom's Learning and Teaching fellowship, attempts to measure how easy it is to carry students predisposed to expect information to be 'given' rather than 'acquired' along the journey leading away from traditional didactic teaching.

One student who participated in the TLP viewed the experience as follows: "I really looked forward to our [TLP] team meetings, as they gave us the chance to think for ourselves knowing that we were not going to be spoon-fed an answer by the Tutor, and our discussions were more meaningful for it".

The TLP represents a fresh approach to the teaching on the Legal Practice Course. Whilst the tutor continues to dictate the 'what' (i.e. the learning and product outcomes) the self-managing group of students dictate the 'how' (i.e. the best means of collaborating). The TLP emphasises teamwork (because students work in groups) and self-reliance (because they cannot consult with a tutor) among students. The potential benefits of the TLP are described as "pragmatic (e.g. cost and time effective), and educational (e.g. student- centred learning, and self-directed learning)".

However as Tom's article explains: "...the real 'educational' measure of the TLP is that it goes beyond teaching Probate law; it inculcates the 'softer' skills such as teamwork and time management. It also introduces students in a practical way to a fundamental aspect of the practising lawyer's life which is not taught elsewhere in the LPC: time recording and billing of clients."

The University's new Virtual Learning Environment enables Workshop discussions to be held online by postings being made on a Discussion Board and it is envisaged that further research in this area will comprise conducting more Legal Practice Course Workshops remotely by use of the online Discussion Boards. Research will be carried out into the level of students' engagement, and their attainment rates in module assessments in those modules where more online transactional 'tutorless' workshops are introduced.

The full article can be accessed at: DOI 10.1007/s10991-011-9095-z

For more information on the project or finding please contact Tom Serby.

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