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Student Participation in Legal Education in Germany and Europe

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 March 2019

Lisa Rieder  and
Hanjo Hamann

Extract

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In Germany, the possibilities of students to participate in and contribute to legal education are generally quite limited. Compared to the legal education systems in the USA and Canada, the course of studies is rather theoretical and quite anonymous. Communication between students, faculty staff and deans is rare, and classes are fairly big. As to the abstractness of the curriculum, several changes have been made to improve the situation. For example, a reform in 2003 was supposed to increase foreign language competence and provide for more specialization and practical relevance. However, the system can still (or again) be considered to be “under construction”. Many important skills are not being taught, and the awareness of the international, social and cultural contexts is largely neglected or lacking reference to the subject matter. There is an ongoing debate about further changes to the legal educational systems especially about the adoption of the Bologna Process. While some consider it inapplicable to the German system, others have already started transferring it at their university. Several federal states have meanwhile started endorsing a basic reform. However the next rulings will not be until 2011. Presently scholars, policy-makers in the field of education and economists face the challenge of devising strategies for legal education that meet the needs and interests of all “stakeholders” while being compatible with the traditional German system. Students are curious and concerned about the future of their curriculum. Their means of participation include a) passively evaluating teachings, b) actively engaging in a student parliament or self-governed student councils of a special field (so-called Fachschaften) and c) actively involving in student organizations.

Type
Section 5: ‘Is More More?’ Thinking about Student Organization, Government and Community
Information
German Law Journal , Volume 10 , Issue 6-7: Following the Call of the Wild: The Promises and Perils of Transnationalizing Legal Education , July 2009 , pp. 1095 - 1112
Copyright
Copyright © 2009 by German Law Journal GbR 

References

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15 In Europe the ESU (European Students’ Union) engages in higher education for all fields of study, available at: http://www.esib.org/index.php/About%20ESU/what-is-esu; besides there is AEGEE, which is engaged in promoting cultural exchange, peace and stability, active citizenship and higher education in Europe, available at: http://www.karl.aegee.org. On an international level, AIESEC as the world's largest interdisciplinary student association is engaged in higher education for all areas of studies is AIESEC, available at: http://www.aiesec.ca/en; besides there is WISE (World Initiative of Students for Exchange) which focuses on promoting understanding and interaction among students of all subjects on an international and local level, information available at: http://www.wise-global.org.Google Scholar

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