The Stone Soup Dispute Resolution Knowledge Project encourages faculty to assign students to collect qualitative data about actual dispute resolution practice.  Many faculty require students to conduct interviews of practitioners or parties.   You may require students to write papers analyzing their interviews, though you may discuss the interviews in (and out of) class without requiring students to write papers.

This post includes documents to help you plan these assignments, including documents that you can provide to students.  Faculty are welcome to use or adapt these materials to fit your instructional goals and circumstances.

Guidance for Faculty in Developing Stone Soup Course Assignments.  This document gives an overview of the project and provides advice about planning Stone Soup assignments.

Model Interview Assignment.   Faculty can assign students to conduct interviews in almost any course relevant to practice.  Click the preceding link for an assignment to conduct interviews about a negotiation, and you can adapt it for other assignments.  The following are versions of the assignment tailored for civil procedure, contracts, criminal law, property, and torts courses.

Guidance for Students in Conducting and Summarizing Interviews.  This document gives advice about effectively conducting interviews and taking notes.  These techniques are similar to those used by lawyers and other professionals.

Model Invitation for Interview.  This is a model request for an interview and includes information for subjects to provide informed consent.

Professional Ethics Rules Regarding Confidentiality of Interviews.  This document includes provisions from ethical rules permitting lawyers, mediators, and arbitrators to disclose information about their cases as long as the information provided could not reasonably lead to identification of the parties.

Model Format for Stone Soup Papers.  This model format makes it easier for students to organize their papers and for faculty to read the papers.  If students share their papers publicly, this format provides for some uniformity.  Faculty do not have to use this format and may tailor it for their courses.

Grading Rubrics.  John Kleefeld/Michaela Keet and Gemma Smyth shared the rubrics they used to grade Stone Soup papers.

Sample Papers.  This post collects sample papers from Negotiation, Trusts & Estates, and Evidence courses.

Consent Form For Students to Share Their Papers.  We want to share more student papers in the future.  This form is for students to give permission to do so.  They have the option to do so without using their names if they prefer.

Bon appétit.