Commission on Professionalism Creates First Online Course

online course Have you ever taken an online course? One recent study found that more than 5.8 million students have enrolled in at least one in 2015. Nearly 2/3 of academic leaders call online education “critical” for their institutions.

At the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism, we have taken note of this sea-change in learning and the innovative potential of online education. To that end, we are incorporating a new online strategy for how we educate lawyers around the state on issues of professionalism.

Lawyers everywhere are invited to take the Commission’s first online course, Talking About My Generation: Learning Conversations in the Legal Workplace.  The free online CLE focuses on improving communication among the four generations present in today’s workplace – Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials.

As we have written about before, each generation has its own unique perceptions, perspectives, and values. This online course will help lawyers better understand these differing viewpoints, showcasing how those perspectives impact perceptions of professionalism.

The course lays out the history and values of each of the four generations, and then teaches lawyers how to engage in learning conversations to create a more cohesive and collaborative workplace. Why is midnight not “end of day”? How can a Gen Xer keep moving up in the workplace? What can younger attorneys and older staff do to work together more successfully?

Comprised of interactive videos, audio, quizzes, activities, and games, the online course incorporates several in-person learning techniques in an highly-accessible web-based format, ensuring the 90,000+ attorneys in Illinois can learn about professionalism on the go or even in the comfort of their own homes.

Commission Chair Judge Debra B. Walker believes this course is crucial for those seeking to understand professionalism in today’s workplace:

The course is diverse, interactive and fascinating on every level. It tells a highly engaging story of four very different generations, and gives all attorneys communication strategies that they can use right now in their practices. I look forward to this course changing the conversation on the potential of online learning and CLE.

Talking About My Generation: Learning Conversations in the Legal Workplace has been approved for one hour of Illinois professional responsibility CLE credit, and can be accessed from the Commission’s online CLE portal.

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