The Law Teacher - Institute for Law Teaching and Learning

The Unfortunate Story exercise: recognizing a Diversity of Student experience
— continued from page 2
and what, if anything, you would do
differently were this event to occur
today. This assignment is limited to
250 words. Please be prepared to read
your story aloud on the first day of
class.
The assignment is wide open, not limited
to law or law school in any way, and
the student may tell any story that he or
she finds comfortable to read aloud to a
room full of strangers.
Over the few years since I developed the
Unfortunate Story assignment, I have
discovered that the assignment is useful
to discover the diverse backgrounds of
the students as well as for assessment
purposes. The Unfortunate Story is a
great icebreaker on the first day of class,
as everyone must stand up in front of
the class and tell his or her story. we
all learn something about a classmate
that may not arise out of the traditional
introduction that generally includes
the student’s hometown, where he or
she went to college, or where she or he
worked. Through the Unfortunate Story,
I learn unique information about each
student that is interesting, provides
details about each student’s diversity of
experience, and makes it easier for me
to remember his or her name. I enjoy
getting to know students through their
personal stories. The students also learn
to appreciate their classmates’ diversity
of experiences through the Unfortunate
Story.
as an initial assessment tool, the
Unfortunate Story allows me to
evaluate: (1) whether the student can
follow directions, i.e., did he or she
follow the word count limit and the
details of the assignment? Did he or
she read the written story to the class or
just recount an event out of his or her
head; (2) the student’s writing skills,
i.e., basic grammar, punctuation and
sentence formation; (3) the student’s oral
communication skills, i.e., whether the
student is comfortable speaking aloud,
any foreign language diversity issues
that may require eSL coaching or other
educational attention; and (4) whether
the student may require attention for
personal or psychological issues, i.e., to
identify possible academic performance
accommodations and make referrals to
the appropriate professionals.
Through the Unfortunate Story, I can
also gauge students’ diversity of life
experience and possible learning styles.
Stories range from straightforward to
humorous to very sad and upsetting.
For example, new college graduates’
Unfortunate Stories tend to revolve
around events that occurred in cars
(about one-third of student stories are car
stories), getting stuck on the highway,
getting lost, getting a car towed, getting
tickets. Younger students are accustomed
to a college classroom environment.
More seasoned students may relay
stories about work, children or other
significant life issues, and may have an
adjustment period in returning to the
classroom setting after years away from
school. Sometimes, Unfortunate Stories
provide great insight as to potential
personal difficulties that students may
bring to school regarding family or other
relationships. we all know that law
school is a delicate balancing act and that
maintaining a professional-personal life
balance is difficult during the rigors of a
law school education.
Some of the Unfortunate Stories students
share are highly unusual and dramatic,
and include the following:
• Being kidnapped by Bedouins on a
camel in Turkey
• Becoming blind in one eye in a sports
accident
• Losing a job on a television reality
show after a producer committed
murder and suicide
• Being separated from a parent and
later reuniting with that parent
• Discovering that an absent parent has
stolen the student’s identity
• Being mugged and fighting for life
on the street on a bitterly cold Moscow
night.
Often, the diverse Unfortunate Stories
will spur a legal discussion or define an
interest in the classroom. This semester
I heard a series of pet stories that
prompted the class to discuss animal
law and animal rights. The Unfortunate
Story also often prompts a discussion
of potential personal injury lawsuits
and the requirements to prove an injury
(a good lead-in for a torts problem
assignment). The Unfortunate Story
can open up diverse discussion topics
in class on the day that the stories
are relayed, for an entire semester, or
sometimes even for an entire year.
at the beginning of the semester, I
promise the students that I will read
to them my own Unfortunate Story.
I tell the students that I understand
how difficult it is to be restricted to a
word limit, but that many courts (and
publications!) have a word limit for
filings/articles so it is good practice in
legal writing to be subject to a word
limit requirement. when I read my story
to the class at the end of the semester, I
follow my own instructions. I write my
own Unfortunate Stories constantly to
challenge myself, and I read different
stories to my classes each semester.
The Unfortunate Story assignment is
a useful introductory information and
assessment tool for both an introductory
legal writing and an advanced elective
class. If you are looking for a new
method to break the ice in class or to gain
initial assessment information regarding
your students’ diversity of experiences
and communication skills, try assigning
the Unfortunate Story. and please drop
me a line and let me know how it goes
for your class.
____________
Deborah L. Borman is a clinical assistant
professor of law at Northwestern University
School of Law. Contact her at deborah.
borman@law.northwestern.edu.
The Law Teacher | FaLL 2012 | 3