ABA Votes to Allow Law Students to Take 50% of Classes Online
Law students can now take 50% of their classes online after the ABA voted Friday to increase the limits on distance education courses.
Reuters reports that the ABA voted on increasing the limit from one-third of a student’s total credits to half. The association also eliminated a rule that students can take no more than 10 credit hours of distance education classes during their first year of law school. The new rule also includes changes that will allow law schools to further bolster their online course offerings.
Distance education classes are formally defined as courses where students are physically separated from faculty for one-third or more of the class duration. The last time the ABA increased its distance education limit was in 2018, from 15 credit hours to a third of credits. In 2020, the ABA temporarily relaxed its distance education limits due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
STUDENTS PREFER REMOTE
In a 2022 survey of 1,400 law students, 52% of respondents expressed a preference for remote Zoom classes over in-person classes. Additionally, nearly 69% of the students expressed a desire for increased flexibility in earning credits through distance education, beyond the existing one-third limit at that time.
Sources: Reuters, American Bar Association
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