Class Environment
Welcome to Digital Abuse!
In the Classroom
This seminar will involve a blend of classroom discussion, guest speakers, and team presentations. Sometimes I’ll ask questions to particular students as a way of stimulating conversation. Other times, I’ll pose questions to the entire class and invite volunteers. Your job is to be prepared to participate every day. But things happen. If you find yourself unprepared, please just say so. There’s no hard cap on the number of “passes” each of you may take, but this discussion-heavy seminar meets only once a week, so it’s important for you to engage actively in the vast majority of sessions.
I’m committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive classroom that supports your learning. Our discussions in class will sometimes involve uncomfortable situations — that’s an essential part of law school. We’ll tackle difficult policy questions that highlight conflicting social values, and it’s critical that we all listen in good faith when we disagree. I find this to be a good practice generally, but it’s a particularly useful skill for lawyers. This doesn’t mean we can’t disagree with each other — quite the contrary! — but I expect everyone to act respectfully at all times. Your time in law school marks the beginning of your career in a profession, so I expect you to act professionally. Professionals can be serious or silly, but they must be responsible and respectful.
When you’re participating in class, what matters is quality, not quantity. Quality doesn’t mean giving the “right” answer — there’s often no such thing, and even wrong answers can be great learning tools. The key is to be prepared and make your best effort to put your thoughts into words. Try to support your answers with reasoning and evidence. Your contributions will be valuable building blocks for our discussion even if they sometimes feel clumsy in the moment. I expect you to support each other as colleagues. We’re all in this together — it’s a collaborative process. Please trust me.
Some people have anxiety about speaking in class. This isn’t the end of the world, but it is something we can work to fix. Talk to me if you find you’re one of these people. We’ll work on it or work around it.
Please be thoughtful about your use of technology in class. I’ll explain what I mean by “thoughtful” when we meet. No recording or photography in class, please. And for reasons eloquently expressed here, please call me Professor Kadri.
Beyond the Classroom
I’ll hold student drop-in hours at 10:30–11:30 am on Wednesdays. Please come by with questions about class, the law, law school, life — whatever you like. Or just come by to say hello.
I believe in setting boundaries and maintaining a healthy work-life balance, and I strongly encourage you to do the same while in law school and beyond. For me, this means doing my best to avoid working after 6 pm and during weekends so that I can spend time with my family and friends (and dogs!) and doing things that enrich my personal life. For you, that might mean something quite different, but I’d urge you to be self-reflective about your time as you pursue your legal education.
What this means for us is that I generally won’t answer emails during evenings or weekends, nor will I email you during those times unless absolutely necessary. You are, of course, free to email me whenever you’d like — I recognize that you might prefer to keep different working hours — but please be thoughtful about the requests you make of others during law school, including your peers, your professors, and our amazing administrators and staff.
To help manage the time we spend working together this semester, my preference is for you to ask questions during class or speak with me during drop-in hours or immediately after class. These settings allow for richer conversations, and you never know what tidbits you might pick up when we talk or when you listen to my discussions with other students. If you’d like to speak about something more privately, you may also email me to schedule an individual or group meeting on Zoom or in my office.
Most importantly, please know that teaching you is a priority for me this semester. You shouldn’t hesitate to contact me. I’ll make time for you.
The law school’s attendance policy applies to this course, and violations of that policy may result in involuntary withdrawal and a failing grade in this course. Basically, attendance is required unless you feel unwell, test positive for COVID-19, or have some other compelling reason to be absent. Don’t worry about letting me know in advance if you must miss a class — your first priority should always be to protect your own health and the health of your classmates.