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The virtual happy hour for contract law students: reflecting on an unplanned transition.

Lauterbach, Thorsten; Fulford, Heather; Agnew, Mia

Authors

Mia Agnew



Contributors

Emma Jones
Editor

Caroline Strevens
Editor

Abstract

The restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic forced university teachers to switch to an online delivery mode. Students signed up for in-person delivery became distance learners overnight. Whilst both teachers and students quickly became familiar with technology such as MS Teams and Zoom, this unplanned transition to online learning brought with it concerns about student health and wellbeing, particularly of first-year undergraduates. One of our challenges as educators was to find ways of building a trusting and empathetic learning community in a virtual learning context. In this chapter, we report on the launch, during COVID, of a weekly "Virtual Happy Hour" (VHH) designed as part of a contract law module to provide a forum for touching base with students, checking on progress, and, through fun activities such as quizzes and games, to build confidence, reassurance and rapport during a time of change and uncertainty. We reflect on the efficacy of the VHH initiative, and note how these weekly online sessions made an important contribution to sustaining motivation, social health and wellbeing of students and staff alike. Looking ahead, we explore the value of continuing this kind of supportive touchpoint initiative as we transition again to in-person teaching and/or blended learning.

Citation

LAUTERBACH, T., FULFORD, H. and AGNEW, M. 2023. The virtual happy hour for contract law students: reflecting on an unplanned transition. In Jones, E. and Strevens, C. (eds.) Wellbeing and transitions in law: legal education and the legal profession. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan [online], chapter 5, pages 87-106. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-27654-5_5

Online Publication Date Aug 9, 2023
Publication Date Dec 31, 2023
Deposit Date Aug 24, 2023
Publicly Available Date Aug 10, 2025
Publisher Springer Publishing Company
Pages 87-106
Book Title Wellbeing and transitions in law: legal education and the legal profession
Chapter Number Chapter 5
ISBN 9783031276538; 9783031276569
DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-27654-5_5
Keywords Online learning; COVID-19; Collaborative autoethnography; Self-reflection
Public URL https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/2048838
Contract Date Aug 31, 2022

Files

This file is under embargo until Aug 10, 2025 due to copyright reasons.

Contact publications@rgu.ac.uk to request a copy for personal use.




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