Metacognition in professional legal education: equipping trainee solicitors for practice post SQE

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The aim of my research is to investigate the effect of a programme designed to support metacognitive development for law students during the professional phase of their legal education. As the introduction of the SQE includes transitional arrangements, the LPC and the SQE are likely to run in parallel for at least two years and it will be valuable to collect data from both cohorts.Following the development of the above resource, I anticipate that the first year of this research will be required to develop the questionnaires and agree the parameters of the research. Students will be offered the opportunity to participate and will be provided with details of the research and their involvement, together with a statement regarding anonymity and their right to end their involvement at any time without giving a reason if they so wish in compliance with appropriate ethical requirements. I will also ensure that the management of data is fully compliant with GDPR requirements.The aim of the research is to evaluate the significance of metacognitive development in legal education and to analyse the effect on performance, both academically and in the workplace. It is anticipated that learners and employers will find the programme beneficial and that providing students with this type of support will assist students whose educational experience has included fewer opportunities to develop metacognitively and whose performance in academic life and in professional education may be inhibited as a result. As considered above, the SQE is essentially a product-focused curriculum. As there are no courses, and therefore no attendance requirement, there are concerns that professional attributes and mindsets, which were integral to the LPC, will not be developed across the board (Bristol Law Society response to SRA consultation 2017).