Student Resources

One of the great things about ILSPA’s Legal Secretaries Diploma is that it is not assessed through closed book exams. The focus is put on your understanding of the course material, rather than how well you can memorise it. Law and procedure can require in-depth study and a lot of concentration. Students who are able to train their brains to retain information will find it easier to process and move through the learning material with confidence.

Here are eight quick and easy tips to help you retain information: 

1. Repetition

The past few months have been a time of unprecedented change and disruption for many of us in our normal day-to-day lives. While for some this has led to additional time at home to dedicate to things such as courses and self-care, for others it will have led to the opposite. With work, family and schoolwork all needing to be squeezed in at home, there is little time left for other responsibilities such as studying.

Returning to study after a period of time off can sometimes be a daunting task. People can be prevented from studying due to various reasons such as work commitments, health issues and looking after family. Whatever the reason, here is our advice to ease you into studying your course again with confidence:

Think ahead

ILSPA’s tour of the Royal Courts of Justice has always been a popular and interesting element of our Legal Secretaries Diploma course. Over the years hundreds of Students have benefited from attending a unique and specifically tailored tour from our Patron and former evening class tutor, Amanda Hamilton. Our guided tour is created to help Students put their learning material into perspective and really understand the court system and processes they are being taught.

So far in our series looking at different learning methods, we have looked at both visual and audible learners. This month we will be taking a closer look and discussing the best study methods for kinetic learners.

As the word ‘kinetic’ suggests, this type of learner processes information by movement. They find it easier to learn and remember things when they are physically engaged and actively participating in what they are learning. You may think a legal qualification like a Legal Secretaries Diploma, which is traditionally considered a ‘book-based’ subject, would be difficult for people who need to be more active and practical in their learning style. However, you will see that there are some great ways to adapt your study practices to make yourself more active even when you’re studying from written course materials.

Last month we looked at the best ways for visual learners to study and process information. We learnt that people who are visual learners often respond to things such as colours, pictures, diagrams and other visual information. This month we are going to be taking a closer look at the second type of learner, the audible learner.

People learn in different ways. So, if people learn in different ways, then it is only logical that they should study in different ways. When you are studying, you may prefer to read out loud, rewrite text or even act something out to commit it to memory. You may like lists, colours or Post-its around the house. Your preferred study method gives a good indication of what sort of learner you are. Once you know this, you can establish which practices will help you and which are not really going to work. You can read more about the different types of learners here. In this article, we will be focusing on visual learners – people who need to see new information in order to truly learn it.

Course providers will often use different methods to assess a student’s understanding of the course they are studying. Some courses may have exams, whereas others will use coursework. Practical Assessments are a type of coursework, and this article aims to answer some of the most common questions about them.

ILSPA’s Legal Secretaries Diploma is a vocational qualification, and as such it aims to teach the skills and knowledge required to allow graduates to enter employment upon completion of the course. The coursework is therefore made up of achievement tests to assess your knowledge and Practical Assessments to assess your application of this knowledge to a specific set of documents.

What are Practical Assessments?

When embarking on a career as a Legal Secretary or advancing your expertise within your role as a Legal Secretary, it will be necessary for you to study a course which provides you with the knowledge and skills needed for the job.

ILSPA’s Single Subject Legal Advanced Level courses are offered to Legal Secretaries who are looking to gain an in-depth understanding of one particular area of law, and acquire some advanced skills at a Paralegal level. In order for ILSPA to assess your understanding of the law, you are required to submit assignments in essay form.    

To start with, it’s a good idea to define what an essay is. If you were to look up the word in a dictionary, or even online generally, you would find a variety of meanings such as “a piece of formal writing which discusses a particular issue, situation or problem”.