Yet professors in the region have realized that the teaching methods and the workload of these programs are much more demanding than those of traditional classes. A good clinical class requires a full-time professor with strong experience as a practicing lawyer, substantive knowledge in the relevant legal area, experience with clinical teaching methods and the time and willingness to work closely with students in an interactive manner. There are many professors with the substantive knowledge and an increasing number with practical experience, but developing the unique clinical teaching skills required and putting them into practice on a regular basis requires a great deal of time and devotion. Moreover, interactive teaching methods are still quite novel. As a result, clinical teachers can learn a great deal from each other and from more established programs, in addition to developing skills on their own.
Clinical programs provide a continuous learning experience for all involved.
Our Third Annual Colloquium on Clinical Legal Education set out to address some of these issues head on. In the first sessions of the colloquium, members of Law Faculties of Sofia University and Plovdiv University shared their experiences in conducting clinical programs. The following days consisted of a series of intensive working sessions for clinical teachers. A combination of presentations in plenum and smaller break-out sessions covered various aspects of teaching methodology, syllabus design and professional responsibility and ethics. The first major theme of the colloquium concerned teaching methods.