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

Instructor REFOCUS

Hi Audrey, I agree. This form of reflection enables you to continue growing in your personal life as well as professional expertise. This in turn enables you to have an even greater impact on the lives of your students. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Blog

Using Humor In The Classroom

"A keen sense of humor helps to overlook the unbecoming, understand the unconventional, tolerate the unpleasant, overcome the unexpected and outlast the unbearable."

This quote is one you as an instructor can reflect on as you are conducting your classes. As a part of our human nature we like to laugh. Laughter is good for both the body and mind as supported by numerous studies. As you prepare your lesson plans look for places that you can use humor as a break in the flow in content delivery. With the interjection of humor you are letting the minds of your… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Adapting Your Instructional Strategy

Hi James, Thanks for sharing this student interpretation strategy with us. I think this is a great idea for helping students to understand the concepts being taught as well as developing comfort in sharing those concepts. As you say this strategy also helps you know where your students are in understanding. I know this information will be of help to many other instructors. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Adapting Your Instructional Strategy

Hi James, Well said in relation to how we need to approach our students with our content delivery. By offering them ways to make application and see relevancy they will be able to get a better fix of the content and skills in their memories for use later on. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Effective Motivation Techniques

Hi Dan, Good way to show the students the value of other classes as they apply to their current studies. They need at times to have someone "connect the dots" for them between their various classes and previous experiences in relation to their futures in their career area. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructors as Role Models

Hi Sherri, Connecting the dots between the classroom and the real world is so important. Often the students get caught up in the internal aspects of the course and their studies they don't see how it all connects to their next step. Your approach helps them be able to see and prepare for that next step. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Developing Clear Goals and Objectives

Hi Andrew, Good comments about helping students to see value to the course content. This increases the motivation level as well as an understanding of application and relevancy. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Motivating Learners

Hi Terry, You raise a very good point about student motivation. The majority of my students are full time workers and I have them in class from 4 until 10 pm. This presents a real motivation challenge. For some of my classes I have the students bring examples from their community lives of how the content can be applied. I also assign them some assignments where they apply content either in their homes or community so they can see the value of what they are learning and this really helps with motivation as well. So they get to see application… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructors as Role Models

Hi Andrew, Right on target. Sometimes instructors forget the importance of serving as role models. This gives the students a reflection of what a professional should be like in their field. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Being Successful in College

Hi Gregory, This is so true. They need to feel a sense of comfort and support and being accessible to them helps to create this feeling. Keep up the good work. Gary

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