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

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Hi Tunessa, Good point about knowing student characteristics. This information enables you to customize your instruction so that the needed student supports are provided. Then it is up to the students to put forth the effort needed to be successful. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Hi Anthony, Right you are about the complex mixture of students and their respective reasons for being in the class. We need to factor all these elements into our instructional planning so we can "target" our content to meet their desired outcomes. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi Joy, So true. We cannot emphasize it enough. Feedback keeps students engaged and focused because they know how they are doing and what they need to do to successfully complete the course. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Hi Tunessa, This is a good way to build student confidence. By letting them perform these tasks independently you are helping them to see what they can do and what they need to work on. It is a progressive building of skills that will really prove valuable when they are on their own. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Hi Anthony, So true. Passion is catching as is enthusiasm. If you are excited about your area and are prepared to share it with your students they in turn will get excited about learning it. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Your Instructional Style

Hi Shaun, Good professional development idea. Watching someone else teach can give you much insight into how you want to approach your own classroom. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Learning from Instructor and Student Introductions

Hi Chonitia, Thank you for these comments in relation to what we need to be as instructors. You are right about the need to always be learners. We do a lot of learning by listening so we need to make sure we are listening to our students. The quote you shared captures the essence of our professional development. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructors as Role Models

Hi Ron, Way to go in reflecting what a professional is suppose to be like in both the behavioral and professional areas. You are setting the bar high for them so they know what they need to do to get ready for their own career success. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Student Motivation Factors

Hi Keelan, Incentives do work well with students. They like knowing they can "earn" different things. My students are really food based so we have pizza days to reward them for completing major projects, etc. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Hi Heather, Keep up your learning about the use of technology. It will pay off for you. It seems there is something new coming up all the time that I can use with my students once I take the time to learn how to use it. Gary

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