5 Reasons To Try Legal Enrichment Classes
Before we commit to anything, we always need to pause and think why we are doing so. Thinking about sending your child for something so new and novel like a legal enrichment class is definitely fraught with uncertainty - yet, it is an exciting opportunity at the same time. As long as you consider the reasons thoroughly, you can be confident in making the best decisions for your child.
Today, I will present 5 reasons why you should let your child try a session of a legal enrichment class. It will be broken down into 2 'why not's and 3 'why's.
If Your Child Goes For Ballet / Art Enrichment Classes, Then Why Not Legal Enrichment Classes?
As mentioned in the previous post, if you sign your child up for ballet or art classes (without expecting them to take it up as a profession), then why not legal enrichment classes as well?
Ballet and art classes definitely do stretch your child in many ways beyond the traditional classroom environment and help your child to develop skills beyond the academic curriculum.
Legal enrichment classes do the exact same thing - with an added advantage. It is also a practical skill that is immensely relevant in the working world. Just think about your own professional career and you will come to realize this.
Whether you are buying a house or writing a will, some legal basics would help you make better decisions! So why not think a little ahead for your child?
If You Are Spending Money On Tuition For Schoolwork, Why Not On Legal Enrichment For Real Work?
Chances are, you are already spending money on tuition on a regular basis. The objective is for your child to get good grades in school.
However, academic grades are only a small part of life's great equation. I can name you many successful people who were not strong performers in school. In fact, many of you would probably attest to the fact that your own academic grades were average, yet you are building successful careers in the real working world.
Let's face it - school grades are only temporary. Within 2 to 3 years of working, your working experience counts for infinitely more than your years spent in school.
So why not allow your child some time away from competing and stressing out about school grades, and take the time to learn a few skills that would be useful in the real world?
Legal enrichment classes certainly help to impart legal content and skills - but beyond that, it also helps your child to read better, write better, think better and speak better, all in the context of learning something fun and new!
A Future Lawyer? Get A Head Start!
This reason is only applicable if you think your child wants to be a lawyer in the future.
If you think this way, then you should know this important statistic - 4 out of 5 law school students have relatives who are lawyers.
This means that, statistically, children who are exposed to legal concepts or have access to legal mentors have a much higher chance of entering law school.
This statistic is not unique to lawyers alone - it is pretty much the same story for doctors as well.
To even allow your child to compete on the same equal footing as these people who may be more privileged to have relatives who are already in the legal industry to give them advice and to talk about legal concepts with, your child either has to (i) spend a lot of hard work reading up on his/her own about legal concepts and issues; or (ii) try a structured course at a legal enrichment class and have access to a legal mentor.
I can only say this because I was once that student. I did not have relatives who are already in the legal industry to coach me or mentor me and I witnessed firsthand how difficult it was to keep up with my peers when I was finally in law school.
Even If Not A Lawyer, Be Multi-Disciplinary
There is no pressure to be a lawyer in the future.
But there is an increasing pressure to change the way we work and the way we learn.
My own personal belief is that a professional in the future can no longer hope to survive just by specializing in one field. Future professionals will need to be multi-disciplinary in order to survive and compete for the best jobs.
To be honest, this is already happening. I'm not sure about your industry, but the legal industry is set to be disrupted by new technology and new ways of doing things. Just knowing my law and improving my legal skills are no longer enough - I may need to pick up basic programming / coding in order to remain relevant.
What would the working world your child inherits look like? Will good grades alone be enough? Or would he / she need to pick up as many skills as possible in order to succeed in his / her career?
Not everybody requires medical skills (i.e. be like a doctor), but everybody in working world could use some basic legal skills. Beyond using legal skills in the legal context, you could also think of your child being a better thinker, better writer, better speaker, in whatever chosen profession he / she decides on.
Affordable One-Time Fees
Why are other lawyers not thinking about offering this service? This is because such a service simply cannot compare to what lawyers can earn at a law firm.
Just for reference, a lawyer in training working at a prestigious law firm can already charge clients about S$200/hr. In comparison, the fees for Aletheia Academy only averages about S$50 to S$100 per hour.
In reference to other tuition services, Aletheia Academy's fees are certainly slightly higher - but this is because your children will be learning from a fully qualified lawyer.
Many parents have asked - "if you can earn more at your job, why are you doing thins?" My simple response is that I want to help other children prepare for the future.
Based on my own journey through law school and then finally into the legal sector, I find that I am woefully unprepared for it. I wish to help other children who may undertake the same journey as me and I hope that learning from my experience (and mistakes) will help them have an easier time transitioning from student life to working life.
I do this in my spare time, after work and mostly on weekends.
Additionally, since my courses are skills-based, there are no recurring fees. Once I've imparted the skills to your child, your child should be able to independently learn on his/her own. This also frees me up to impart my skills to other children.
Let's consider it mathematically -
If your child goes for, let's say, Math tuition twice a week, at S$50 per session. That works out to be about S$100 per week, S$400 per month and a whopping S$4,800 per year. And this is only for one topic for one year. In your child's entire student life, you are likely to spend upwards of S$20,000 for tuition.
However, look at Aletheia Academy's programs - (i) the "Accelerate" program is just one session and only costs a maximum of S$200; and (ii) the "Accentuate" program consists of six sessions and only costs a maximum of S$1200. If you sign your child up for both courses, that's only a maximum of S$2,400 - a fraction of what you would spend on tuition.
I hope this post was able to help you think more clearly about Aletheia Academy's offerings.
Aletheia Academy - Tomorrow's Lawyers, Today.