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

Feeling Accepted Helps with Success

Hi Annette, What are some of the methods you use to mix the class up so your students get a chance to work with each other? Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Using a Well-prepared Syllabus

Hi Angela, You make a good point about how you need to set the ground rules and polices for the course so the students know what the expectations and requirements are and how they can achieve success in the course. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Understanding Learner Characteristics

Hi Karen, This is very important for an instructor to do. He/she needs to "read" the students and then plan instructional delivery methods around their needs. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Effective Motivation Techniques

Hi Seth, This is a good way to connect the dots for students as well. They can see how the course is going to unfold and what they will need to do to be successful. This gives them a vision of what is going to come. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi Brad, Way to lay out clearly what students have to do to earn a specific grade. This reduces confusion and frustration on the part of students. They know the requirements from the very beginning of the course and this gives them the standards for the course. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Motivating Learners

Hi James, Right you are. Excitement is contagious and the more instructors share it the more engaged their students will be. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructors as Role Models

Hi Jeris, You make a good point about the need for students to understand how important networking is to their future and how they need to keep positive relationships with all those in whom they come in contact. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi David, Students on the post secondary level need to have a certain level of ability and responsibility but there are times they may need some support to keep moving forward in the course. Sometimes life events intervene to the point that students need some empathy to help keep them going. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Using a Well-prepared Syllabus

Hi Sarah, You are following a good strategy in not providing excessive detail in your syllabus as you proceed through a new course. The syllabus lays out the expectations, requirements and polices of the course. You can use a calendar to lay out what you are going to cover and when you are going to cover it. This way when you are teaching a new class you can prepare a syllabus that is informative for the students but you have the freedom to make schedule adjustments as needed as you move through the course. You haven't changed anything in the… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Using a Well-prepared Syllabus

Hi Sharon, Thank you for sharing this example of how a syllabus can become a integral part of your instructional delivery. You are very fortunate in being given a well developed syllabus to start your teaching career. This gave you a solid foundation from which you could expand your teaching expertise. Gary

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