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.

Discussion Comment

Reasons for Enrolling

Hi Rebecca, This is a good point. Assigned students require additional effort to "sell" the course to them. By showing them application and relevancy you create in their minds a connection between the required course and their career development. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Being Successful in College

Hi James, This is a good way to help students to "connect the dots" between their previous life experiences and what they are studying now. This will really help with their self confidence and career growth. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Hi Charles, This is a problem that many instructors experience. I use a pretest assessment to get a baseline on my students and that really helps me to know where to start with a new group of students. You are on the right track with your approach. Keep up the good work. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Hi Carla, I am assuming that with your research and professional development efforts you have identified the basic delivery formats for your students. In addition, to these I would suggest the use of learning groups, case studies, competitive games between teams and student presentations. All of these offer variety to the students while reinforcing learning. If you have any further questions let me know and I will be glad to help in anyway I can. I wish you the best in your teaching. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Gary, Right you are in terms of students needing to see themselves as having the opportunity to be successful. This is something the instructor needs to provide as the course gets started if the students are going to become engaged in the learning process. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Creating Personal Support Systems

Hi Douglas, The personal factor is critical in teaching. Students need to know that their instructor cares about them and their success as well as being excited about the field. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Reinforcement as Motivation

Hi Mark, You are right about the need for application. Students need to see relevancy and application to course content. If they don't they will quickly disconnect from the course and you the instructor. The more we can do in this area the more our students will be engaged in the learning process. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Mark, Good point about creating a sequence to what you have time to teach within the time frame. This seems to be an ongoing challenge for us all. This is why we need to be very deliberate in our choices so our student receive the content that is essential for their career growth within the time we have. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Being Successful in College

Hi Anthony, You make a good point about helping students. You can give them some suggestions about possible solutions to their problems but it is up to them to follow through. If you continue to excuse them and their performance you soon will become an enabler rather than an instructor. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Feeling Accepted Helps with Success

Hi Tracy, This is so true. They need to feel accepted if they are going to be comfortable in the course and ready to learn. This also helps greatly with retention. Gary

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