Under South Africa's democratic, constitutional order, training in international law is as vital for domestic legal practice as for work with international and regional organisations such as the United Nations or the African Union. In the preliminary year of the Bachelor of Laws degree (LLB) - year 2 of 4 in the undergraduate stream and year 1 of 3 in the postgraduate stream - students are required to complete a compulsory, introductory course in international law. This course is animated by the tension between the classical, state-centred model of the international legal system and concepts such as international human rights, individual criminal responsibility and the common heritage of humanity which are challenging and reshaping the international legal landscape. Topics covered include the sources of international law, international legal personality, the relationship between domestic law and international law, rights to territory, water, air and space, State jurisdiction; the regime of state responsibility, the settlement of disputes; the use of force, the United Nations, the African Union and the influence of international human rights on South African constitutional interpretation.
The course is accompanied by an innovative tutorial simulation known as Inkundla yeHlabathi (World Forum), in which students learn to apply the rules and methods of international law by simulating the work of legal advisers to ten African States.
The course is delivered through a combination of formal, doctrinal lectures, small-group tutorials and the Inkundla yeHlabathi simulation. A compilation of cases and materials, the e-casebook, is made available to students both online and on CD-ROM for offline use. The University of Cape Town implementation of Sakai
The course is profiled on the website of the Department of Public Law of the University of Cape Town (www.publiclaw.uct.ac.za/courses/international_law/ ).
Course Information Course Number/ID:
PBL2001H
Course Length (number of weeks):
24
Course Delivery Mode:
In-Class
Describe Other Delivery Mode:
Use of online interaction
Average Number of Enrolled Students:
More than 60 students
Course Development & Delivery Course Contributors:
Principal responsibility for course concept and design:
* Mr Salim A Nakhjavani (Course convenor, 2008 and lecturer, 2006-8)
* Ms Cathy Powell (Course convenor, 2006-7 and lecturer, 2006-7)
Delegated responsibility for research, technical development, implementation and user support:
* Ms Shihaam Donnelly (Research and Development Assistant, 2006-8)
* Mr Chris Oxtoby (Teaching and Research Assistant, 2007-8)
* Ms Jewel Amoah (Teaching and Research Assistant, 2006-7)
Advisory role in course development and content:
* Professor Christina Murray, Head of Department of Public Law
* Professor Thomas Bennett, Professor of Public Law
* Associate Professor Danwood Chirwa, Department of Public Law
* Advocate Aifheli Tshivhase, Department of Public Law
Advisory role in technical development, user support and funding:
* Mr Stephen Marquard, Learning Technologies Coordinator, Centre for Educational Technology
* Mr Tony Carr, Staff Development Coordinator, Centre for Educational Technology
* Mr David Horwitz, Learning Environments Developer, Centre for Educational Technology
* Ms Shaheeda Jaffer, Curriculum Projects Coordinator, Centre for Educational Technology
* Ms Desiree McKie, Learning Technologies Consultant, Centre for Educational Technology
* Ms Andrea Ressell, Learning Technologies Consultant, Centre for Educational Technology
* Mr Greg Doyle, Centre for Educational Technology (2007-8)
Advisory role in open learning and open educational resources theory, copyright and implementation:
* Ms Eve Gray, Honourary Research Associate, Centre for Educational Technology (2008)
* Ms Cheryl Hodgkinson-Williams, Honourary Research Associate, Centre for Educational Technology (2008)
Course Development:
Course delivery in 2006 suggested that International Law was increasingly perceived by students as an obscure subject, remote from legal practice and the needs of the African continent. While high-quality cases and materials were available from the UK and elsewhere, these lacked an African perspective, and were becoming unaffordable for students.Drawing on previous experience with short, optional simulations in the course, as well as successful initiatives such as the Model United Nations (www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/modelun/index.asp) and international law "moot court" competitions for law students worldwide (see e.g. www.ilsa.org/jessup), the teaching team decided to introduce a simulation, with the aim of "bringing to life" the development and implementation of international law in an African context, and helping students experience in practical ways the interplay of law, power, geo-politics, history and culture. The project has since developed in two phases:
* Phase I: pilot simulation / evaluation
In 2007, the tutorial component of the course comprised a simulation involving students as legal advisers to African and other States, national liberation movements and international human rights NGOs in groups of 12-18 students. While lectures accounted for most of the teaching time, five tutorials over 24 weeks highlighted key moments in the development of international law in Africa from the 1960s to the 2000s (discussed further under "Course delivery", below).
* Phase 2: extending peer learning and depth of simulation
In 2008, the course benefited from synergy with Faculty measures to decrease traditional lectures in favour of small-group teaching. Lecture time decreased from 3 to 2 hours per week, while tutorials increased from 5 to 12 over the course of 24 weeks. Tutorial groups now comprise 15-20 students. Each week, a one-hour doctrinal lecture aims to develop frameworks and critical approaches to the law. In the second hour, students are seated by State in the Inkundla yeHlabathi (World Forum). During this period, students learn to apply legal rules to complex facts, arrive at a State position which may be negotiated with other States, present views to the plenary, both orally and online (discussed further under "Course delivery", below).
Two "Teaching with Technology" grants, awarded by the University's Centre for Educational Technology, allowed the teaching team to hire a Research and Development Assistant - a postgraduate law student with strong technical skills and interest in the subject - to compile, digitize and upload resources, develop initial wikis and research background material for course content.
The vision is to gradually engage other African universities in parts of the simulation, deployed through Sakai and hosted by the University. The University of the Witwatersrand (Johannesburg, South Africa) plans to join one component of the simulation in late 2008.
Course Delivery:
Phase I: pilot simulation / evaluation
Tutorials implemented as "Assignments". Optional practicals allowed students to practice working with more technical areas of the law, such as treaty drafting and interpretation ("Chatroom" and "Forums", but also paper). Multiple-choice quizzes used to encourage tutorial preparation ("Tests and quizzes") . While the simulation drew on a historical events as a springboard, groups were encouraged to "change history", adjusting the legal landscape for their respective States by adopting a simulated treaty they had negotiated among themselves. Students were free to rely on such "simulated law" in marked assignments. At least one choice made by each group in the first semester was designed to play a key role in a simulated situation arising in the second semester. Course evaluations were conducted twice during the year and extensive, largely informal reflection among lecturers and tutors captured learning about the effectiveness of the simulation.
Phase II: extending peer learning and depth of the simulation
"International Actions" arising from plenary sessions posted online using a renamed "Forums" tool. Group discussions also take place in State-specific Sakai "Chatzones". Tutorials were initially delivered through an interactive LAMS module within Sakai, but have now reverted to "Assignments", with tutorial preparation questions as "Tests and quizzes", with each group being a "section". Tutorials are generally conducted "in simulation", as students engage with legal problems from the perspective of their respective States. Wikis also provide a video library, student biographies and pictures of groupwork and plenary sessions.
The 2008 course was adjusted in 4 ways based on the pilot experience. (1) Tutorial groups are limited to States. The marginalisation of other actors (such as national liberation movements or NGOs) in international relations restricted the engagement of these groups in the simulation. (2) The simulation now runs in real time, drawing on emerging situations on the continent, rather than constraining group action to specific episodes of African history. The interplay of "actual time" and "simulation time" proved difficult to manage in the pilot phase, with some students (justifiably) ignoring developments in the law as these had not yet taken place in a particular time-period of the simulation. (3) Most practical exercises are now fully integrated into teaching time and have increased in scope, tracking the simulated actions of States week-by-week and developing tutorial material in rapid response to these actions. The necesary implication is that course material evolves through and with the course. (4) The hardcopy text have been replaced with a 750 Mb e-casebook (using "Wikis" for an online course outline hyperlinked to readings, and CD-ROM for offline use), exposing students to full text (and often facsimile copies) of orginal documents, instead of edited excerpts.
Course Self-Assessment Communication & Collaboration Self-Assessment:
Excellent
Communication & Collaboration Evidence:
Collaborative dynamics are integral to effective teaching and learning in this course. Opportunities to establish and strengthen group identity and peer learning are demonstrable through the use of State-specific chatrooms, complemented by regular, face-to-face meetings of tutorial groups (both biweekly tutorials and in-class simulations of plenary sessions of Inkundla yeHlabathi / World Forum). Powerpoint slideshows at the start of most lectures communicate news (both serious and silly), updates and best practices emerging from the simulation, as a means of encouraging further student engagement. In one instance, a debate between a small group of students in the main chatroom was used as a basis for a simulated practical exercise for the whole class deployed the following week, as an example of rewarding communication and collaboration (see attached file 'Inkundla yeHlabathi sample practical', which was based on students 'spying' in each other's State-specific chatrooms on the Sakai site).
Learning Material Self-Assessment:
Effective
Learning Material Evidence:
Online, hyperlinked reading list (Wiki) complements hardcopy course outline for ease of access during lectures. Sequenced progression through tutorial materials was intended through use of LAMS module, but this was deferred based on experience of the relatively thin integration between LAMS and Sakai as well as technical limitations of student computing facilities. Thus, tutorial assignments are delivered as 'Assignments' while tutorial preparation questions are found under 'Tests and quizzes' - this is a point for improvement. Most resources are provided in PDF format, which students cannot annotate or highlight without expensive software. The decision to make over 1Gb of resources accessible through Wikis helps with accessibility as compared with navigating 'Resources' folder structure, which remains hidden. CD-ROM image of resource library responds to needs of students without regular internet access at home (given comparatively high cost of broadband in South Africa), but not the many students without their own computer. Nonetheless, benefits of e-casebook, including greatly reduced ecological footprint, reduced photocopying costs, portability of data, searchability of data etc., seem to outweigh costs.
Learning Outcomes & Assessment Self-Assessment:
Excellent
Learning Outcomes & Assessment Evidence:
Evidence of extensive contact between staff and students through online Chatzone, email, regular tutorials and discussion during and after lectures. Tutorial groups foster group identity and a spirit of pan-Africanism and ethic of global citizenship, with evidence of personal and group research into unfamiliar histories and cultures. Practical simulation sessions foster active learning in order to present group findings and positions to plenary, while tutorials regularly feature debates to test a variety of legal arguments. Baskets of assignments allow for student choice while balancing academic and practical legal writing and providing an option to earn marks through "mooting" (simulated legal argument in a courtroom setting). Tutors review tutorial preparation questions and provide feedback and targeted teaching to focus on difficult topics. All formative assessments receive online comments. Expert feedback also provided "in simulation" by practising refugee lawyer commenting on simulated State actions regarding refugee rights. Students attracted to optional practical exercises in order to test and refine transferable skills, going beyond mere preparation for exams.
Course Look & Feel, Web Usability Self-Assessment:
Effective
Course Look & Feel, Web Usability Evidence:
Custom-designed logo harmonises course identity across Departmental website, Sakai site, Powerpoint slides and printed material. Images used to enhance learning rather than overwhelm text in most instances; Balance of real-life images and graphics help to make site serious and engaging without being tired or stuffy. Text is resizable according to user preferences; most resources provided in PDF rather than DOC for added readability features..
Learner Support Self-Assessment:
Effective
Learner Support Evidence:
Teaching staff readily visible on site, usually several times per day and at late hours in preparation for tests and exams; almost all questions placed in chatroom,forums or email receive a response within 12 hours. Research and Development Assistant readily available via own email address. Course has parallel, active Facebook site for exclusive student use (excluding Faculty members!). Contact details provided in hardcopy course outline. Regular annoucements circulated to student email addresses as well as being visible on sight and help to maintain a sense of contact with students. Evidence of "on-the-fly" learner support through, for example, marker's memos with general observations on formative assessments to complement student-specific feedback.
Teaching Innovation Teaching Innovation:
Inkundla yeHlabathi / World Forum connects African students with both the theory and practice of international law, helping the voices and insights of the next generation of African lawyers to be heard with confidence on the international stage. Sakai provides a digital repository for information and research, a meeting place to exchange ideas, and a living world within which to generate new knowledge and harness learning.
Inkundla yeHlabathi / World Forum offers students the opportunity to examine firsthand the current and emerging legal challenges facing the continent. In a legal system that recognises scholarship as a source of law, students grasp the potential to become an active part of shaping the law rather than passive observers of the law. They work in groups to assess and develop their own solutions to continental legal problems. Sakai allows new learnings material to be quickly compiled, disseminated, reviewed and assessed.
Inkundla yeHlabathi / World Forum equips students to work comfortably with electronic materials. As effective legal research now depends more on databases than on libraries, and as international organisations and law firms alike switch to fully digitized working environments, Sakai helps our students build essential transferable skills.
Inkundla yeHlabathi / World Forum is currently largest Sakai site at the University of Cape Town, and the first Sakai course site in the Law Faculty; launched in 2007 by the Dean of Law in a demonstration for learning technology specialists, lecturers and other potential change agents drawn from across the University. It has attracted observers from universities across South Africa and internationally. It is playing its part in helping others to embrace learning technologies.
Optional (screenshots, links)
