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.

Activity

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Using a Well-prepared Syllabus

Valerie, Good comments about the value to be derived from a well prepared syllabus. A good syllabus reduces so much student frustration and answers so many questions. This gives more time to address course content and student learning. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Motivating Learners

Michael, Good field to be in. Respecting the fact that they have many opportunities in the future really helps with the motivation factor. Thanks for sharing this perspective with us. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructors as Role Models

Kim, Good point about managing behavior in different settings. The students need to be informed that their behavior is also being evaluated when they are in settings other than just the classroom or lab. Employers want to see the character of their employees displayed in a variety of settings. This goes for faculty as well, just as you said. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Blog

Handwriting as a Learning Tool

A recent study completed by Dr. Karin James, assistant professor in the department of psychological and brain sciences at Indiana University revealed the followed advantages of developing good handwriting.

Developing handwriting skills can help students to expand their brain activation. in addition, printing practice improved letter recognition which enhances reading ability.
Good handwriting can mean better grades since the writing is easier to read and grade by instructors.
Handwriting is faster than keyboarding in many situations. Also, in the process of forming letters a higher level of cognition occurs.
Handwriting aids in memory. Writing and rewriting notes assists students in

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Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Using Graphic Organizers

Edward, Good explanation of the benefits of using graphic organizers. They really help to guide students to the critical course content in a logical way. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Using Graphic Organizers

Francis, It is a great strategy as you say and one that can really help students to see the big picture of what they are being asked to learn. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Instruction Relevant

Francis, You make a very good point. Students may have a different expectation for the course that what you planned. By knowing more about the students and what they see as outcomes you can customize and target your instruction more accurately. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Adapting Your Instructional Strategy

Cynthia, Thank you these informative comments. You have outlined comprehensive approach to working with diverse learners with varied backgrounds. You are creating for the younger students episodic content they can draw upon later on in their coursework and with the older learners pulling the episodic content out of their life experiences. This is a building process that lets everyone bring something to the course and in turn contribute to the total learning process. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

The Human Factor in Retention

Jeff, Great quote and one we need to remind ourselves of often. We need to let our students know that we are there to support their learning and success. Once they know this they will become engaged at a much higher level. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Being Successful in College

Eileen, They do like that personal touch, don't they? The more we can connect with them the greater the development of rapport is going to be and this makes teaching so much more enjoyable for everyone. Gary

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