The Gazette 1990

GAZETTE

SEPTEMBER 1990

At t i tudes of apprent ices to computers 1. Introduction

most useful skill?; Account- ancy, Foreign Language, Computers, Typing. They responded as follows: — 47% felt that Accountancy was the most useful, 38% indicated foreign Langua- ges, and the remaining 15% selected Computers, (i) The participants were then asked which of the fol- lowing they would most like to pursue:— Accountancy, 48% selected this; Foreign Languages 22%; EEC Dip- loma 17%; Computers 13%. (j) On the subject of extra curricular courses they undertake Accountancy/ Business 13%; Foreign Languages 13%; Tax 17%; EEC 4%; Typing 4%; Com- puters 6%. Forty three per cent of those surveyed took no extra curricular courses. Conclusions On the issue of availability or access to computers, it appears that while there is now widespread use of new technology in the legal profession, just over half of those surveyed have used or have regular access to computers. The results indicate that there is a greater like- lihood of use of computers by apprentices in the larger and medium sized offices. The vast majority of those surveyed felt that it was helpful to use or at least be aware of how to use computers. Only 15% of those surveyed were uninterested and almost 80% felt that computers should be included as part of the training provided in Blackhall Place. Until recently students on Ad- vanced Courses were invited, at the end of the day in the Law School, to study the use of computers in various business houses in Dublin. "The usefulness of business skills wes associated with their re l evance in dea l i ng wi th commercial law matters." The Law School no longer offers this opportunity as it met with scant response. A large number of the partici- pants expressed the opinion that management and business skills should also be included in the

puter, to some extent. Of those who had not used a computer in the office the "Sixty per cent of the respondents tied used a comput er to s ome extent majority had been shown how to use them but as yet had not taken the op- portunity to do so. (d) the Participants were then asked if they could type and if not would they like to learn? Seventy per cent res- ponded that they could not type, the remaining 30% had some level of typing ability. Sixty three of those surveyed said that they would like to learn. (e) Do you have a business qualification? Twenty two per cent of the respondents had some form of business qualifica- tion whether it be a primary degree or as a result of post graudate studies. (f) Is a business qualification relevant? Forty three felt that such a qualification was relevant, those who offered a view felt that iswas relevant only if one was dealing with commercial matters. (g) The participants were next asked which subjects should be included in the final course syllabus. When asked if computers should be part of the course, 78% felt they should. On the question of management skills, 73% agreed that this would be aworthwhile sub- ject for the course. Only 40% felt that typing would be a worthwhile subject for incorporation in the sylla- bus. (h) The participants were then asked which of the fol- lowing did they consider the

It has become apparent to everybody involved in the legal profession in the past few years that new technology and in particular computers are be- coming more important in Solicitors' offices. The Tech- nology Committee arranged for an informal survey in order to gauge the level of knowledge of Solicitors' Apprentices on Computers and their attitude to the use of Computers in the legal profession. A sample of 60 apprentices were polled in the course of the survey. The sample includes apprentices at each stage in the education cycle. The size of the office in which the apprentice worked was also considered to be an influencing factor and therefore the sample was chosen so as to include apprentices from practices of varying sizes. (Small, up to four Solicitors, Medium, 5-10 Solici- tors, Large 10+ Solicitors). 2. The Survey The participants were asked questions not only relating to computers but also on other topics which might be viewed as relevant to their further ed- ucation and professional de- velopment. The questions and the responses are shown below. (a) Have you received any formal education in com- puting? 61% of those polled had received no formal education of the 39% remaining; knowledge was acquired as part of their second or third level courses or alternatively as a result of short courses. (b) Are there any computers in your office? Every participant res- ponded that computers were in use in their office. (c) Have you used any com- puters in your office? Sixty per cent of the res- pondents had used a com-

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