NEWS: THE Malaysian Bar Council has introduced electronic learning as part of its Continuing Legal Education programme to enhance the professional dev

THE Malaysian Bar Council has introduced electronic learning as part of its Continuing Legal Education programme to enhance the professional development of members of the Bar and chambering pupils.

As a first step in the implementation of electronic learning, the Professional Standards and Development Committee (PSDC) has developed e-learning modules based on the existing Ethics and Professional Standards course manual for chambering pupils.
Thiru says the e-EPS course is meant to complement lectures.

The e-Ethics and Professional Standards (e-EPS) course encompasses all six modules of the current course.

It is not meant to replace lectures, but complement them, said PSDC co-chairman Steven Thiru. With the e-EPS, pupils can access an overview of the course syllabus, issues to focus on, training on how to approach these issues, and an interactive questions and answer segment.

The interactive features, discussion boards and practice tests also give pupils instant feedback on their progress, he added.

The course, which was launched last month, is a joint effort with CrimsonLogic Sdn Bhd, a technology provider specialising in electronic solutions and services.

“The response so far has been very good. We can also monitor data such as when the pupils log on and how much time they spend on the course. It’s encouraging to see them making the effort,” Thiru said.

He also said that in the past, the failure rate of chambering pupils was quite high — up to half the pupils did not get called to the Bar. It gradually reduced to about 30% over the last two years.

“It was still quite worrying that pupils were not getting the full benefit of the chambering period. With the introduction of e-learning modules, we hope to achieve 100% passes in the future.”

Julie Thomas, the company’s business development manager said that such implementation is a paradigm shift for the Bar Council to “move in sync” with the times.

During the launch of the e-EPS course recently, Thiru said that for a long time the Bar Council had spoken about the need to move away from the traditional lecture or seminar format for professional development. This is to make continuing legal education more accessible and cost-friendly to members.

He also said that the PSDC had plans to extend e-learning to the entire Bar. In the near future, lectures and seminars would be uploaded online, and travelling to attend them may be a thing of the past.

“It is a very exciting time for the Malaysian Bar as we are updating professional development,” he said.

The e-EPS course is currently available from www.eeps.com.my, and can be accessed for a one-off fee of RM30 per user.