Flies on the Wall or in the Ointment? Some Thoughts on the Role of Supervisors at Initial Client Interviews

Clinical Law Review, Vol. 14, p. 415, Spring 2008

NYLS Clinical Research Institute Paper No. 07/08-6

30 Pages Posted: 27 Sep 2007 Last revised: 24 May 2014

See all articles by Carolyn Grose

Carolyn Grose

Mitchell Hamline School of Law

Abstract

This article uses the question of whether or not supervisors attend client interviews with their students as a lens through which to explore other questions about supervision theory, clinical pedagogy and professional responsibility. This examination and analysis appears to set up dichotomies about how students learn best and how clients are served best. The article attempts to deconstruct these dichotomies by proposing a different way to think about these issues. Grounded in theories about adult learning, critical reflection, and role assumption and modeling, the article concludes that the decision about whether to attend client interviews can be one that the supervisor makes on a case-by-case, student-by-student basis, and that the decision might be made in collaboration with the student. Engaging in this kind of inquiry would require supervisors to revisit often and critically their roles as teachers and lawyers, and the needs of their individual students and clients. Moreover, by involving their students in this process, the clinicians model that reflection for them, hopefully teaching not only the skill of client-centered interviewing, but also the skill of self-evaluation and critical reflection. The article is based on empirical and theoretical research that reveals and describes complex spectra of supervision style and professional role. Discussion about these spectra and how they inform our pedagogy provides a rich forum to challenge ourselves as critically reflective clinical teachers.

Keywords: interview, critical reflection, supervision, clinical pedagogy, modeling, teaching

Suggested Citation

Grose, Carolyn, Flies on the Wall or in the Ointment? Some Thoughts on the Role of Supervisors at Initial Client Interviews. Clinical Law Review, Vol. 14, p. 415, Spring 2008, NYLS Clinical Research Institute Paper No. 07/08-6, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1017348

Carolyn Grose (Contact Author)

Mitchell Hamline School of Law ( email )

875 Summit Ave
St. Paul, MN 55105-3076
United States

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
111
Abstract Views
1,062
Rank
444,918
PlumX Metrics