Unfortunately the general mentality amongst students in the UK is that Air Law is something only used to pass an exam, then promptly binned.....
It might be the case that PPL students pickup this mentality from thier insructors, who perhaps have a lot more of No 2) to learn for the CPL/ATPL exams? (I'm not sure about the ratio of 1 ) to 2) in the professional exams).
They might also be affected by the lack of ground teaching of Air Law. Air Law is a practical subject
once it is seen in context. When you try to learn it at home 'to pass the exam', it tends to lose its context and become dry. Instructors should be making sure that students understand the context of what they are learning.
Instructors should also be testing and reinforcing their students knowledge of airlaw in the air. e.g. "How close can we get to that mast legally?". On a recet night flight my instructor did this to me and realised it was the first time in long while that I'd had my knowledge of Air Law tested.
There is a lot of Air Law, and there are bits you only need very occasionally. Instructors should really be helping students to learn and memorise those bits that need instant recall, and ensuring the student has ready access to the bits that cannot be memorised. (There are bits of 'Air Law' pre-printed in my (AFE) Checklists and and on my PLOG board.)
I have heard instructors say to students, including myself, "You just need to learn Air Law to pass the exam". Please can you all start saying "You will need Air Law when you are in the air and possibly under pressure - you need to know this intimately!"
Some testing of Air Law on a regular basis, as per the US system would appear to be a good idea, so long as the question bank was based on the useful, practical parts of the syllabus.