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.

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Your Instructional Style

What techniques can you employ to further develop, refine and enhance your instructional style?

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making a Positive First Impression

Hi Timothy, Great way to start a class off. You are making a good impression on your students while showing them that you respect them for their knowledge and life experiences. This mutual respect effort leads to the establishment of rapport and with rapport comes great teaching opportunities. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Teaching to Multiple Intelligences

Hi Leslie, You make a very good point about the difference between being "book smart" and being "application smart". We use the expression "It isn't how smart you are but how you are smart" that makes a difference in terms of success. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Andrew, Thank you for this insight into how to stay excited about both the field and teaching. Your comments about introducing new things into the course are right on with keeping both you and the content fresh. I have been teaching for many years and I introduce at least one new strategy, activity, lecture, assignment, etc. every time I teach the course. That way I get to be creative as well as excited because I am never sure how the new endeavor will turn out. A little mystery never hurt anyone. Once the new unit is completed I am… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Joshua, Right you are about the need for instructors to take a step back and refocus at times. What are some ways you do this as you are moving through a course? Thanks in advance for your input on this. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Marvin, So true but often forgotten by instructors as they get bogged down with grading papers, doing quizzes and all the other things involved in instructional planning. They need to stop and REFOCUS on why they are there and what they are offering their students so they can get excited about their courses and help the students finish off at a high level of excitement. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making Instruction Relevant

Hi Leslie, Anytime you can show students application and relevance you are doing them a favor in their learning process. They start to see the value of what they are learning by connecting the dots between content and their field. This really enhances their motivation level. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructors as Motivators

Hi Robert, I always enjoyed having instructors that have the attitude that you do. They really motivated me to work hard so I could share in their excitement of the field when I was working in it. I count it a honor to teach students and impact lives. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Instructors as Role Models

Hi Juana, This is so true. The students will remember a model whether it be a good one or a bad one. We must as instructors present a good model for our students so they will know what a model looks like when they are working in their careers. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Effective Motivation Techniques

Hi Joshua, You make a very good point about the need to help students see they can be successful in a course. They often times set themselves up for failure because they know they can't do the work when in reality they can, they just need to be guided toward success. Gary

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