A few students always volunteer and describe unpleasant experiences. Most of the traditional classroom discussion on the subject is quite bloodless. Moreover, the portrayal that students receive from television and movies is so overdramatized that it does not give a fair picture. For example, students have no idea how exhausting it is to be deposed or how nervous clients get anticipating the ordeal. As a result of the students' narratives, the rest of the class gains some sensitivity to how clients and witnesses may feel and why negotiation or mediation is often worth pursuing.
Students are also helpful in contributing factual information.
For example, in my Property class, I often teach cases that took place on the West Coast. I regularly ask students if they have any firsthand knowledge about the town or area where the controversy occurred. Students often relate interesting facts and insights unknown to me and to other Easterners at my Pennsylvania law school. Asking students to contribute their knowledge and experiences has proven to yield great rewards. By making education more of a shared experience, we remove some of those filters.