Ranking systems portraying democratic and constitutional ethos will encourage law schools and related authorities to work towards bringing about relevant social change, says the author.
Author
Swarna Hardikar, Jindal Global Law School, O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana, India.
Summary
Legal education in India has undergone phenomenal changes in the past few years. Gone are the days when certain established universities had a monopoly over legal education, and when interest in professional legal education was surpassed by the likes of science, technology and medicine, which are essential for the industrial and social development of any country.
Lawyers, characterized as social engineers, are equipped with the vision for social change, which is essential in a developing country like India. Lawyers understand the present and have a vision for the future. Social change can be brought about by change in law, which reflects the direction in which the country is progressing.
Ranking systems portraying democratic and constitutional ethos will encourage law schools and related authorities to change; accordingly, that is when they will become equipped to bring about relevant social change.
Hence, it only seems pertinent to analyse the ranking systems in accordance with the democratic ideals and ethos enshrined in the Constitution, including the Preamble, which is where we find the mention of justice, equality, liberty and fraternity, the Fundamental Rights and the Directive Principles of State Policy, where we find the mention of the rule of law, social welfare and the values propounded by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the international convention on human rights.
This will provide a better perspective for judging the quality of law schools and the law students, which will be essential in understanding the changes which need to be made to the current teaching and learning pedagogy. Students will be more equipped to deal with the challenges posed by the legal profession after graduation and will become harbingers of justice.
Published in: Asian Journal of Legal Education
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