Attitude Reconstruction: First-Day Classroom Advocacy Russell D. Larsen Texas Tech University, Lubbock. TX 79409 Tho Volr Dire
The uoir dire is an examination given to jurors and witnesses in U S . courts that reauires those individuals to sneak the truth under questioning to determine whether Gejudices, conflict of interest, or incompetency may prevent or inhibit the return of a fair and just verdict to the accused. Such cluestioninn of ~rosuectiveiurors urecedes their impaneling. The interrogating triai lawyers (barristers) are subsequently allowed a s~ecifiednumber of general and peremptory-challenges (set by court rule or statute) that disqualify or excuse unsuitable jurors. The lawyers a t this time seek t o influence, befriend, and reassure the jurors of their objectivity and good will, the ultimate objective being the eventual return of a favorable verdict for their client. Prospective jurors are not unlike first-day students, most of whom would rather be somewhere else and, despite being curious, are filled with doubts, prejudices, misconceptions, and even hostilities. The origin of these attitudes, particularly about science (and the subject matter of chemistry), and methods for the reconstruction of such uoor attitudes that inhibit the learning process should be oisome interest to every sincere educator. The first day of class presents a rare opportunity to introduce uoir dire-like arguments to new students. These arguments should stress the responsibility of the student as well as show the good will of the instructor. Students can be given time to reflect unon and reconsider their reason for takine a (chemistry) couise. I t is desirable to elicit from them a tacit uledae to u ~ h o l dscholarlv conduct and res~onsibleacademic p&formance and to indertake a serious quest for the mastery of a scientific subject. Merely taking a course "because it is required" should not be sufficient for course impaneling. The marden hours of the first day of class are precious, so this process must be carefully rehearsed to be effective because i t sets the tone of serious scholarship and, in particular, commitment, while allowing the instructors to demonstrate their commitment and desire t o achieve a favorable end result on the students' behalf. This tactic should be put forth as informally as possible, chatting with the class rather than lecturing t o them or givingaspeech. I t is important, inorder to relieveubiquitous first-day student anxiety, to show quickly that chemistry can be fun, too. This now well-acknowledged necessity always has been achieved best by showing favorite lecture experiments. it can be argued that the U.S. jury assignment procedure is far better than the standard class assianment procedure. After all, anyone can get intoa class mer& by standing in a registration line given prerequisites, if any, for that course. In a sense, class a s & p n e n t is left to a judge-the registrar's computer. If jury assignment were left to R judge an unsatisfactorv. iurv " would be seated. The uoir dire examination is a great system because it extracts truth from jurors, under oath, assurine- obiectivitv and commitment to the relevant issues. Inasmuch as all humans have a variety of prejudices, i t follows that the subset of all jurors, like the subset of all
-
864
Journal of Chemical Education
students is prejudiced also ( I ) . All pass judgment influenced by preconceived ideas, not necessarilv based on facts. Were lawyers to be clairvoyant, they couid select jurors having preconceived feelings unfavorable to the other side of the case (2). Were teachers to be clairvoyant, they could select students having attitudes favorable t o serious scholarly commitment tolearn chemistry. Given that we cannot examine our students under oath before they matriculate and thus challenge their presence in our courses, what can be done? Of course, some institutions admit only students who achieve a certain minimum score on a written examination or those that document stringent prior achievement. The success of the Taiwanese and Jauanese educational svstems is due, in part, to the high student motivation intrksic in those students who pass stringent entrance examinations. The task, I think, is one of attitude reconstruction. We teachers must be aware, as trial lawyers are aware, of the prejudices of our audiences. We, like lawyers, must attempt to understand what motivates our audience, and we must be aware that exoeriences will affect a student's *iudzment iust as personalities and experiences affect a juror's judgment. Lawvers scheme to win for themselves and their clients. he; try to sway juror's opinions toward their client, having briefly, in the uoir dire, assured themselves that the jurors have no obvious preconceived prejudices against their clients. Law libraries are full of treatises that deal with the argumentative techniques that can be used to win jury trials. Presumably the attitudes of preselected iurors can be shaped and even reconstructed. c a n the same be done with students who are not preselected?
-
Openlng Statements The classroom instructor can employ the two strategic tactics available to trial lawyers in the important early hours of a course-a uoir dire-like examination and the opening statements. The uoir dire, discussed above. must he undertaken during the first class and can be achieved within a 10-minute period. The opening statements. however. need not be completed the fir& day. They may even extehd for most of the first week, or even longer. The opening statements in a jury trial are crucial. They are acknowledged by successful trial laywers to be the "most overlooked weapon in the trial lawyer's arsenal" (3).A forceful opening statement can determine the winner of a lawsuit. The nature of opening statements is based on the fact that first impressions are the most important. They harden like cement (4). Lawvers recoenize that bv summation time minds are weary. w e certainly recognizeas lecturers that by midsemester our students are beeinnine t o show intellectual fatigue and by the last four weeks of t i e course disinterest and resignation have captured a large fraction of them. As with jurors our students a t the time of opening statements are "neither tired, nor bewildered, nor angry" (5).Thinking is unencumbered a t the beginning-this is the best time to acquire information. Do we make a mistake, then, wasting fresh minds by reviewing old material, by going over material that has previously been learned, albeit imperfectly? How
often do we hear students saying that their course is boring in the first few weeks? An often-auoted Universitv of Chicaeo Law School study once estahlis'hed that about 65%of all jurors decide a case the hasis of their first imoressions immediately following the opening statements (6): If attitudes are to b e changed it seems that the o ~ e n i n estatement phase of a course-the material in the in&odu&ry chapterof a textbook-and the first weeks of lecturing are the olace to begin. MY attitude toward first chapters generalchemistry &xthooks is very poor-in fact, I have never seen a first chapter that I have liked! They are dull stuff! That is the place to start with attitude reconstruction, is it not? Some interesting techniques are used by good trial lawyers in their opening statements. They are tips for teachers, I think: Avoid overstatements: nothine is worse than an unfulfilled promise. Use visual i d s . ~ o i o spend t energy on a dead issue. In one example of an opening statement lawyers can actually explain to the jury the purpose of the opening statement phase of a trial (7):
on
An opening statement is something like a preview in that each lawyer can give the jury an outline of what heexpects the evidence to establish.This preview might he somethinglike a friend telling you what a moviewas all about hefore you aitually viewed it. His recounting of the details might not be appreciated but, neverthe-
less, you would probably get more out of the movie if you knew in advance approximately what to expect. By giving you a resume of the case now, it will be easier to follow because sometimes evidence is introduced out of its logical sequence. Suggest things to watch as the course unfolds. Simplify and limit the issues. Lift the class to make it feel that the cause in which it is engaged is an important one, to society as well as to the person himself. Imply that a feeling of importance is associated with the study of the subject matter of the course and the participant's role in it. Avoid platitudes and overused phrases. Incorporate recent well-publicized ideas. Use a pleasantry or two a t the start. Try to he oblivious to (classroom) sounds. If you notice them, others will too, destroying the atmosphere of total dedication. Make each student comfortahle with the classroom activities and include them in them (8).Psychology textbooks emphasize the importance of "~rimacv".The first belief about a suhiect is the one that is most deeply believed (9). Avoid mock displays of fairness-professors and lawyers are protagonists and are expected to he by both students and jurors;-students seek a ~ a r e n t a limaee-someone who knows their husiness and someone who-can he relied upon. Sincerity is the quinteasence of the trial lawyer-perhaps, too, it should he quintessential to the professor. These are actual suggestions incorporated in introductory law texts that emphasize the role
Volume 63 Number 10 October 1986
885
and importance of opening statements. I t seems to me that they have relevance to the chemistry instructor who faces a task that can be made easier if persuasive skills *e perfected and the importance of early impressions is realized. Given an that has can Our students not help hut appreciate the stunning intellectual achievements of our great civilization and its sciences? Our science must he portrayed as just that! Remember, if you will, to approach the door of the classroom with the intention of making each day of class a "first-day"-with all of the freshness and excitement thereof.
866
Journal of Chemical Education
Literature Clted (,)
R.D.. . ~ ~ t i t "~d ~ ~ ~I: quips. ~ Chaff, ~and Differences", t ~ paper ~ pm-n anted at the southwest and R X ~ Y~ ~ ~R ~ ~t~ e~~ eiof tthe ~~ iAAAS, ~~
Lam,
Luhbock, TX,March 19M unpublished. (2) Morrill,A.E."TrialDipI~m~ey~~, 2nded;CourtPracticelnstitute:Chiago. 1972;p2. b f 2 , p . 22. (4) J U I ~ ~ XA. I , S."opening statements"; cdaghan: wilmette,IL, 1~34%P 2.
{:{
E$;;:.%2, (7) n e f z , p . z s .
i:{ E2.Y g:?kfff NJ, 198%p 104.
Opening Stetement
Reports: Enslewd
Cliffs,
i ~
~ ~
