Gary Meers, Ed.D.

About me

I am an Education Advisor/Consultant for MaxKnowledge. I write courses that assist in the professional development of career college instructors. These courses range in content from the introductory level to advanced instructional development. I started my teaching career as an instructional technology teacher on the high school level, completed graduate school and then moved into higher education. I spent many years in the area of teacher training at the University of Nebraska. While at the University of Nebraska I stared working with career college instructors to improve their instructional delivery skills. As a result of these experiences I have been a consultant to career colleges throughout the United States and a number of foreign countries.

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Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Creating Personal Support Systems

Hi Janiece, I like your approach and how you see your own life experiences forming your instructional style. This is reflective of the support your want to give your students while they are taking their own educational journey. Thanks for sharing it. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Accommodating Learner Preferences

Hi Heather, I like this approach. It gives students variety in their learning and helps to keep them focused and engaged. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Understanding Learner Characteristics

Hi Julie, What I do is try and get a class profile from the Student Services Office. This gives me a general picture of the incoming class. At the first class meeting I have the students fill out a general background form and this fills in the missing information for me so I then can see where I need to make adaptations or adjustments in my course content and delivery. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Emily, This is why a well prepared syllabus is so important. You can refer to it when questions come up about assignments, etc. This will reduce the time needed to deal with general issues and you can respond to specific student issues. You are right these things can consume all of your time if you let them and then you don't get to enjoy teaching as much. Keep up the good work. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Motivation Through Relevancy and Application

Hi Jenny, This is where the disconnect comes many times for students. They fail to see the application and relevancy of what they are learning so they just drift away in their thoughts and effort. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Strategies for Increasing Student Motivation

Hi Abigail, There are many factors that enter into getting a student to appreciate the learning opportunities that are being presented. When I encounter a student such as the one you describe I talk with student individually to try and get a "read" on him/her. I ask the student "What he/she is seeking?" "What can I do to help them with their learning?" "Is there a special part of the course they want to focus on?" These questions are intended to try and get the student to "buy in" into the course and what I am trying to teach. I… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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The Learning Environment Effect

Hi Jody, This is what makes learning real. When we are in the "real world" doing "real world" things we start to see how our education is coming together and will benefit us. That is why it is so important for students to see application and relevancy to what they are learning. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Hi Joelouie, This is a great plan for professional improvement. You can see how as you accomplish each step of it your expertise will be greater and your teaching more effective. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making a Positive First Impression

Hi Walter, One of the things besides being well prepared and having my materials posted up is to start off with a discussion session where the students start communicating with each other and myself. I base the discussions on how their previous experiences are going to contribute to their course success. They like to see the connection as well as it helps them to feel more comfortable since they get to talk about themselves in relation to the course. This helps the students to get to know each other better by reading their comments. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making a Positive First Impression

Hi Kelly, Right you are. What are some of the techniques you use to get your classes off to a good start? Gary

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