Roundtable - ‘Covid Keepers’ – Practical innovations inside and outside our classrooms

The Covid-19 pandemic and ensuing lockdowns are widely reported to have presented new challenges to teaching and learning in Higher Education. The Panel submits that this experience also revealed exclusions and omissions in legal education which existed before the pandemic and which may not have otherwise been readily apparent. It will seek to identify those exclusions and omissions, together with the opportunities we now have to address them for the benefit of undergraduate law students. We refer to these opportunities to innovate as ‘Covid Keepers’. We will also anticipate the new challenges that accompany such new opportunities. Part of this panel discussion will focus on student support methods such as a peer- mentoring programme and interventions by student skills assistants, and external stakeholders such as potential employers. The practical implications and impact of establishing and running these forms of support for undergraduate students will be discussed. Empirical research conducted into the impact of an alumni-mentoring programme will also be considered. Issues to be examined during this panel presentation include: 1. The move to online – challenges and opportunities 2. Student engagement with group work in the online environment 3. How professional networks have influenced pedagogical practice during Covid-19 4. How to effectively manage external stakeholders such as employers in support of teaching & learning