Exploring Students' Engagement with the Curriculum in a Law Programme Taught in English at an Italian University

ABSTRACT Studying Law at Roma Tre (SLR3) is an academic initiative launched by the University of Rome Three in 2006-2007, giving Italian and foreign students the opportunity to learn legal content using English as the vehicular language in a multicultural context. One of the main objectives of SLR3 is to stimulate students’ interest in developing skills and professional know-how in areas in which English increasingly plays a key role as the lingua franca of commerce and trade, mergers and acquisitions, contractual agreements and international arbitration. The first part of the presentation illustrates a case study being carried out on the programme from an English for Academic Legal Purposes (EALP) perspective. The study investigates students’ expectations and perceptions of experiences in their being inducted and socialized into studying core disciplinary subjects in law as well as learning the ways of thinking and practicing the discipline in English. The case focuses not only on knowledge of English, use of technical legal terminology, and the pragmatics of communication, but also on the implications of learning and teaching core law subjects in English in higher education. An ‘insider’ view of what actually happens in multicultural, multilingual classrooms shows significant differences in the ways students from different countries engage with the curriculum. Qualitative inquiry also gives insights into how students construct their social networks reflecting their cultural, educational, and language backgrounds. The second part of the presentation describes direct teaching experience in SLR3 – the methods, materials, and feedback from participating students. The case method – including the Socratic Method, moot court presentations, and writing case briefs – has been welcomed by Italian and other European students as a refreshing change from the traditional lecture style. These methods and materials – and small class sizes – enhance students’ engagement by stimulating the typical competitive drive among law students. This innovative programme presents challenges for professors and students, forcing them to increase normal efforts to succeed. The overwhelming convergence of the requisite skills needed to master both law and language creates economies of scale in classes taught in law in a language other than one’s own. Thus, when students learn law in a foreign language, they are “getting two for the price of one.