Essay Questions

How do Fischel and Paul explain the fact that some students get better grades even when it seems like they haven't revised?

Fischel and Paul acknowledge the anger students feel when people who "know" less or study less end up with better grades. They explain that this is due to their ability to apply their knowledge to different situations. For example, they state that it "was less what she knew coming into the exam, than what she did with the questions she encountered on the exam itself."

Why do students learn bad habits, according to Fischel and Paul?

In this text, Fischel and Paul explore the common bad habits of law students when taking exams. They ultimately argue that many students take the approach that knowing more is the best way to achieve top grades. This can be explained by the approach to undergraduate degrees, which involved "a demonstration of student knowledge," rather than sustained analysis.

What strategies are "frequently promoted by well-meaning fellow students" that may be misleading?

According to Fischel and Paul, there are two main pieces of advice passed down from older students to first-year students. Firstly is the idea that all a student needs to do is show the professor they have "grasped the fundamentals of the course," which leads a student to miss answering the question entirely. The second piece of advice is the "IRAC" method, which involves reducing the exam to the four following steps:

"Spot the issue; cite the rule that resolves the issue; apply the rule to the facts presented; offer a conclusion that answers the question."