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

Developing Student Rapport

Hi Louis, Trust, respect and rapport are three key words to teaching success. You are right on with your comments about the need for developing them with students. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Learning from Instructor and Student Introductions

Hi James, I like the amusing story and something humorous about oneself. It is important to create such a connection and your approach allows that to happen. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Learning from Instructor and Student Introductions

Hi Aimee, Thanks for your comments about how to start off a class with ice breakers and introductions. You are right it is always fun to watch them start to interact and get to know each other. Then it is a matter of building on the introductions to create a positive and forward thinking learning community within the class. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Hi James, I agree with you on this and that is one of the reasons I have stayed in teaching all of my career. I saw a bumper sticker one time that said "To Teach is to Learn Twice" and I really agree with it. Thanks for your comments on this. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Hi Jeremy, This is a great way to expand your instructional delivery options. By talking with other instructors as I am sure you already know you all can share what does and does not work and then you can go from there with your own instructional delivery planning. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Application of New Knowledge

Hi M. Clinger, You make a key point about the need to explain the "why" for students. Many of them get so involved in the process they lose sight of the end goal. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Motivating Learners

Hi Barry, Great attitude. Would like to take one of your classes. This is one of the essential parts of teaching and you are reflecting it in your approach to classroom and working with your students. Keep up the good work! Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Hi Barry, Great way to develop both respect and rapport with your students. The fact you have worked through coping with learning disabilities sets you up in a great position to support student learning efforts. They know you know what many of them are going through and that creates a powerful connection for both parties. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Hi William, One way with bigger classes is to offer instruction in the four different learning preference areas at different times throughout the course. This way students can learn to learn in other preference areas as well as have the comfort of knowing that parts of the course will be offered in their preference mode. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi Catherine, I really like this approach as well. I do the same thing because I want to make sure that the assignments don't get overlooked or buried in the syllabus, from a student perspective. The separate sheet helps to focus the attention of the students. Another thing I do is use colored paper for the assignment sheet. That way the bright green/blue, etc. sheet can be seen easily in the student notebooks and referred to by me. Gary

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