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

Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Stelian, Great list of ways to expand your instructional expertise. You are bringing all of your life experiences into play as you develop your instructional style and delivery. I know you are going to have continued teaching success with these efforts. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Instruction Relevant

Bruce , Yes, a balance is essential for the maximum growth to occur for a student. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Instruction Relevant

Victor, Being able to research and find answers individually is a skill that students need to develop. You are right on with comments about them needing to solve such problems and/or answer questions on their own since that is what the bulk of what all of us do in our field currently. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Germany, This is a good and quick way to get a profile for each student. Then you can customize your instruction to meet the collective needs of that group of students. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Nicholas, I appreciate your question and I'm not sure how to answer it due to the constraints that you are working under. When I do 1 week institutes I use "pause points" where I have students jot down the key points of what we have just covered or I will give them a problem solving situation to assess their knowledge acquisition. These two strategies help me to see what students may need some follow up before or after class. This way I can keep the course moving forward but also be of support to the students. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Preparing and Delivering Effective Lectures

Jeffery, Great strategy. Thanks for sharing it with us as well as the website. I know this will be of value to other instructors. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Accommodating Learner Preferences

Joel, This is a great strategy to use and I am sure results in a lot of interesting discussions. The case you mentioned is so controversial that the students would I think be excited about exploring the different aspects of such a case. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Evelyn, Right you are about interaction and student engagement. You are creating a setting for both to occur with your methods and that makes the time go quickly for the students just as you mention. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Motivating Learners

Laurie, When such a situation comes up I talk with the student individually and review the work that has been submitted. Then I tell him/her that I want to commend them for their work and in order to do so I need the follow things from them. Then I outline the specifics of what it takes for successful project completion, knowing they already know this but I review it with them one more time. Then I set deadlines for segments of the work to be completed. This way I can coach them at different stages so when they are through… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Kim, You have a great network of growth opportunities plus you are giving back much to your field through your organizational service work. This is how you stay current as you mentioned. Keep up the good work. Gary

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