The case study in learning law

Abstract

The present study is a reflection on the method of case study in learning law. To achieve this purpose we will discuss the traditional method and its limitations to the challenges of law in the era of globalization. We will emphasize the urgent need to implement the case study method in Portuguese law schools, as an instrument that enhances the active participation of the student, protagonist in the process of learning and knowledge acquisition. This study is justified today, especially the challenges triggered by the Bologna process, including the implication in the teaching, learning and assessment. The teacher is assumed as a supervisor of the learning process, calling for the autonomy of the student. It is intended that students develop critical thinking and be able to reflect on their own learning process. Therefore, the need to revise the traditional methodology here rooted in the teaching of law. A review of the literature will be carried out, which will seek to contextualize, at present, the reflexivity with the pedagogical objective. Use shall be a deductive reasoning, based on the general reality of teaching to learning the law, underlining the importance of the case study method for the development of didactic and pedagogical dimension. At the end of this tour we will be able to discern the extent of the right learning, seeking a methodological model capable of mobilizing students for their new role, participatory and critical. The current model of education should focus on learning and the use of teaching methods that are not limited to the learning, particularly the most active. The student should be able to participate and discuss the acquired knowledge in concrete contexts of social life.

Keywords: education; teaching; case; method.