'Do the Pomodoro!': Timed Writing Labs in the Classroom

While you can never be certain you’re accurately tracking changes in student performance over time (damn you, Heisenberg!), it’s uncontroversial to note that today’s students seem to have greater difficulty mastering the metacognitive skills required for the writing process itself. Most of my recent teaching innovations have focused on helping students develop their own practice of writing, in addition to learning the specifics of legal writing. Online teaching during the pandemic has only heightened the need to help students develop techniques they can use on their own to increase comprehension and productivity. One strategy I have introduced recently in the first semester LRW course is timed writing labs, which I use both to help students generate assignments and to teach them broader time management skills. I began conducting timed writing labs for in-person classes, and more recently have employed them in my virtual classes as well.