Robert H. Smith is a Professor and former Dean at Suffolk University Law School in Boston. He has taught Mediation courses at Suffolk and at Boston College Law School for 20 years, and has been an active community mediator in divorce, family, and housing disputes. He serves as a trainer for several community mediation programs as well as high school peer mediation programs. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the University of Chicago Law School.
Teaching Videos in Mediation Training: Why Use Them and How To Do it Well
Teaching videos are commonly used in mediation and ADR classes in law schools as a supplementary teaching method to live role play simulations, but not typically employed in community mediation trainings, which rely on live demonstrations and role plays. The author advocates for increased use of teaching videos in community mediation training, explores the advantages and disadvantages of video compared to live role plays, and presents effective teaching techniques for using videos.