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

Instructor REFOCUS

JH, Good point and one we need to keep in mind as we plan each class. We need to strive to be fresh and excited about the content we are sharing in each and every class. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Developing Student Rapport

Thao, I agree with you. We instructors need to earn the respect of our students and then work to establish rapport with them throughout the course. This rapport can and will carry over into the future when the students are out in the workplace. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Application of New Knowledge

Allison, Important point that you make. We need to strive to help them make that connection because once they do they will start to see the value of what they are being asked to learn. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

The Human Factor in Retention

Meredith, So true and so important for the students to know. They need to know you are their advocate if they are willing to put forth the effort needed to be successful. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructor Enthusiasm

Barbara, With passion and enthusiasm comes connection to content. You are building a learning bridge for your students to cross with your approach. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructor Enthusiasm

Jeff, I agree. How can you "sell" your field and the learning required if you don't care about it? Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructor Enthusiasm

Patricia, Your excitement and success in your field is a powerful motivator for your students. Your efforts help to "sell" the learning that needs to occur. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructor Enthusiasm

Jason, Good for you. With this approach you are helping students to stay engaged even though the content may not be the most exciting even though it is essential for them to learn. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Jennifer, Good point about instructor learning. Each time I complete a class I am amazed at what I have learned from my students. They bring such varied backgrounds and experiences into the classes and I get to learn from their lives so much new information. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Terry, Good reminder as we see class dynamics unfolding with different student profiles coming in. This is what makes teaching fun because we get to change our approach based upon student enrollment so even though we are teaching the same class over and over it is never boring since the population is in a constant state of flux. Gary

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