Vince Bank

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Jurisprudential is appropriate for . . . . . .

. . . .

Older students, with significant modification at junior high and middle school levels. This method of instruction can be applied across the curriculum: Ethics issues in Science and Math, for example. An ideal setting would be a 12th grade U.S. Government course, advanced placement.

Issues to watch for include non-verbal students feeling threatened, and potential for bullying and group-think to overwhelm minority opinions.

Complex issues should receive the time and thoroughness they deserve; teachers should not present complicated issues and then offer a limited time frame. Successful Jurisprudential Inquiry deals successfully with both issues and values.

Also important is relevancy of issues – if possible, discussing issues directly affecting the students will help bring those issues to life.

Support system

Support system

Source documents to understand issue/problem

Web is ideal research tool for advocacy on all sides of issues

Principles of Reaction

Principles of reaction

• Teacher maintains a vigorous intellectual climate, respecting views and avoiding direct evaluation of student opinion

• All issues are explored

• Substance of thinking is probed for consistency and clarity

Social System

Social system

Structure ranges from high to low – initially the teacher guides the entire process, and movement from phase to phase.

As students become proficient with this model, they ultimately move through it almost unsupervised. The social climate is vigorous and confrontational.

Notes for Teachers: nuts and bolts

Instructional notes:

Phase 1: introduce topic - read a story, watch a film, discuss an incident
Further orient students by reviewing the facts in the case

Phase 2: synthesize facts into a case (freedom of speech issue? Social/economic issue?), ID conflicts between values

Phase 3: students now take positions, and support

Phase 4: explore positions – teacher takes confrontational role and tests students’ stances (Socratic role/method)

• Teacher asks where values are violated; asks students to prove desirable or undesirable consequences of actions; asks students to prioritize values – demonstrating lack of gross violation of secondary values.

Phase 5: refine and qualify positions – often flows naturally from Phase 4

Syntax

Phase one: Orientation to the case

Teacher introduces materials, and reviews facts

Phase two: Identifying the issues

Students synthesize facts into a public policy issue

Students Id values and value conflicts

Students recognize underlying factual and definitional questions

Phase three: Taking positions

Students articulate positions, stated in terms of values or consequences of decision

Phase four: Exploring stances and patterns of argumentation

See where values are violated (factual)

Prove the desirable or undesirable consequences of positions

Clarify values

Set priorities: assert priority of one value over another and demonstrate lack of gross violation of second value

Phase five: refining and qualifying the positions

Students state positions and reasons for them

Phase six: testing factual assumptions based on qualified positions

ID factual assumptions; determine if assumptions are correct based on facts