When I had first joined, I realised that law schools in my country were so different from the ones I had seen in movies. Needless to say, I was a tiny bit disappointed. And to be very honest, there wasn't any movie made for law students in my country except the courtroom battles and things like that. But there wasn't anything that showed me what law school really looked like here in my country, not many YouTube videos I could binge-watch, and hardly any "day in my life videos" either, to gain inspiration.
I was surprised by the idea that there aren't many study groups here, and that there aren't any groups like the ones I saw in movies.
But of course, Hollywood is not in my country and neither is the western curriculum for law school followed over here.
So the very idea of having study groups, never even occurred to me as it wasn't actually a normal thing here. (At least not at my University).
However, instead of the fixed study groups that have been portrayed in the movies, we do have another kind of study group, and they are, well, our own friends that we tend to have throughout law school, with whom we sit down to study or teach.
But this question had always come into my mind- Do we need a Study Group like the one western countries have adopted?
While I do find certain benefits, I also find that there may be disadvantages to it. So let's look at the pros and cons of each.
Oh, and before we move ahead, the concept of study groups in western countries are the ones that include, having a group of students sitting down to plan, to study and ACTUALLY study. They may or may not be your friend circle, but they're the ones you sit with, while studying.
You share ideas, thoughts, notes, papers, anything else, within that group!
Now that we know what these study groups are, let us move on to the possibility of having such groups in here, at least at my university.
Pros:
There are quite a few pros of having a study group which is different from your friend circle.
They help you with notes and also help you with social and academic support.
They introduce you to new people- networking!!
Positive peer pressure, which means the idea of sitting down and completing your goals and not pushing them away (because they're not your friends, hence no change of plans)
You tend to learn new tips and tricks from each and every person and of course everyone benefits.
Cons:
As much as I love the pros, they are idealistic and maybe, in reality, may not be the same for everyone.
Meetings could get delayed and not everyone is very supportive of you, especially if you're a part of a study group that is mostly comprised of competitive "toppers"
Sometimes, all of you may have a common ground and end up becoming really good friends. This means that you now have another set of friends to sit down and waste your time with (if you're not being careful).
If you're someone who prefers to sit down and read alone and think and read out loud, you may be the odd one out and it could get a little messy!
But how do you actually find a perfect study group?
In my opinion, perfect is just an illusion. But finding peers you can sit down and study with? Maybe not.
So what do you do to find the middle ground?
Stick with your friends but also get to know people who have known to be helpful and supportive. Pick people wisely, is all I'd say.
Study with your friends, but also have people who disagree (politely) with you. Certain subjects require your analytical thinking and the only way you will ever have analytical thinking is when you have a Devil's Advocate in your group who shows you the other side of a coin.
Is study group worth it? Definitely. But only to a limited extent!
HAPPY READING!
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