Even at a time when the value and quality of legal education is being heavily criticized, a new book showcases what some of the best and brightest law teachers are doing and what is actually working in legal education.

What the Best Law Teachers Do by Michael Hunter Schwartz, Gerald Hess, and Sophie Sparrow, renowned legal scholars on teaching and learning, is based on a national study of 26 law professors nominated as “the best” by other professors and students.

According to the study, these best professors share a common set of characteristics:

• thoughtfulness and passion for teaching
  
• developing personal relationships with students
• setting high, clear standards for students & themselves
• substantial effort in class preparation, even after teaching a class for many years, mastery of teaching methods
• use of extensive ongoing and final assessments
• creating excellent results in lasting learning for their students