Education Rocks!
by Marsha Smitherman, PP, PLS
It’s just possible that there’s an age problem in the
NALS Education Committee. Our fearless leader, Cindy
Root, showed up at Tulsa wearing a tie-dyed T-shirt with
flowers in her hair. She said her son had the peace
symbol and wouldn’t give it up. Bearing in mind that
the ’60s are 40 years ago—that’s a bit scary. Be
all that as it may, this year’s theme for the Education
Committee is “Education Rocks!” And if you don’t
believe that, consider this:
Out front promoting the educational theme are Crosby,
Stills & Nash, with “Teach Your Children,” but not
to leave out the continuing education set, they also mention
the need to “teach your parents” (oh, gee, that may be
us . . .). Van Halen, ever the bad boys, are “Hot
for Teacher.” Jack Black explores rock music as teaching
methodology in School of Rock. Chuck Berry chronicled
modern education in “School Days,” but like many rockers,
he was really looking to escape. (“School’s Out,”
for instance, by Alice Cooper.) Michelle Pfeiffer
plays an ex-marine teaching inner city high school kids
in DangerousMinds, and she uses the lyrics of Bob Dylan
to do it.
Of course, the Education Committee wants to encourage
you to do more than just escape when the bell rings. There’s
no better way to convert your job from a painful 9 to 5er
reminiscent of junior high school—rules, restrictions,
and really boring stuff to do—than by working to get a
better understanding of the importance of the work you’re
doing. For those who’ve slipped into their job with
little training, a NALS Education Course may be available
in your community, and that’s a great introduction to the
broad world of legal practice. With or without the
training of the NALS Education Course, you can document
your knowledge of beginning legal staff skills with ALS
certification. When you’ve put in some time and have
a lot of on-the-job experience and want to start filling
in the gaps with higher level information, it’s probably
time to start studying for your PLS certification. And
if you’re doing paralegal work, you’ll want to look at
paralegal certification through the PP program.
The Education Committee has worked to develop materials
to help support your effort to gain certification. Check
the NALS website for the Resource Manual for each certification
program and to get information on obtaining mock exams. In
particular, the Resource Manuals offer a map to help you
plan your journey to certification.
Knowledge
is power—the power to do more interesting work for better
pay and better employers; the power to have more understanding
of the way you spend your workday; the power to better exercise
your talents, intelligence, and leadership skills. So
pick an education or certification program and Rock
On!
