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

Application of New Knowledge

Hi Clifton, This is what relevancy and application is all about for students. They hear, learn and then apply their new knowledge in a practical setting. Well done. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi Ross, Good plan for getting them to let you know what they know about course expectations. How do you get the information from them? Do you have them write it out, have small group discussions, or some other form of giving feedback? Thanks for your input on this. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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The Human Factor in Retention

Hi Robert, All good points about how to relate the content to your students. The human factor is essential to successful teaching as well as the establishment of rapport with students. I like to hear stories about the different career fields as well so I know your students really like the "street stories" you share. Keep up the good work. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Developing Clear Goals and Objectives

Hi Joanna, Good point about the need for clear goals and objectives. For many of us educators to have clear goals and objectives seem obvious but you would be surprised at how many instructors don't have them or even list them for their students. I have no idea how they make it through a course or know when they have finished the course except that time is up. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Comprehensive Planning for Instructional Success

Hi Joanna, Great idea! The binders really help to illustrate to both students and other observers what is occurring in your class. As for setting them up for other faculty I would tell them that you will be glad to show them how and let them develop their own. This way they will be invested in the binder system rather than just having it handed to them. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Comprehensive Planning for Instructional Success

Hi Joanna, This is very common in the career college sector. This presents a challenge for faculty in that they have to follow the corporate guidelines while personalizing the course for themselves and their students. The up side of this is that faculty get to be creative in how they make the course their own while working within the guidelines. Good to hear you can use field trips, guest speakers, and outside projects to reinforce the in class learning for your students. These are powerful motivators for students as you know and it would tough to be without them. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Comprehensive Planning for Instructional Success

Hi Joanna, Good points about the need for and ways to enhance course planning. The part about being available to students is very important because students need that bit of extra interaction with the faculty member especially if they are non-traditional students. I like to be in the classroom early because by chatting a bit with the students I can get a feel for where they are coming from and what the tone is going to be for that class. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Strategies for Increasing Student Motivation

Hi Cheyney, I think this is a great idea. The students get to stay in their comfort zone while getting settled into the class and well as helping to build their self confidence for when they have to take risks as they get more advanced in their training. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Your Instructional Style

Hi Cheyney, This is a great way to stay current in the field plus bring real stories of the field to your students. Also, through your work in different restaurants you are creating a network for the students with potential job opportunities. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Expanding Your Instructional Abilities

Hi Paul, Good way to stay current plus it is a lot of fun to learn about all the new stuff being brought out in the field. So the student benefit from your new knowledge while you benefit from knowing you know about the latest and greatest stuff. Gary

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