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

Instructors as Role Models

Hi Melissa, As a person that is always early to meetings and prompt to return calls/emails I understand where you are coming from. My personality is at times my own worse enemy because I am a compulsive completer. That being said I know my responding to my students is valued by them as based upon their feedback. I will continue to communicate with them promptly because I know it shows them my concern for their success. I know your students see your responses the same way. So keep up your efforts because you are making a difference in the lives… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructors as Role Models

Hi Jonathan, You make a great point and instructors need to be reminded of it often. We are always "leaders" not matter what we are saying or doing so we must act as such through all of our teaching efforts. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Learning from Instructor and Student Introductions

Hi Jennifer, Good points about class introductions. I also think the time spent doing introductions help everyone get settled into the course. It lets the instructor get a feel for the dynamics of the class as well. Introductions are a win win for everyone. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi Shakespeare, Your sharing the expectations and responsibilities aspects of the course is a good way to help the students see the big picture of the course. You are letting them know what they are going to have to do and what they are going to get out of the course as a result of doing it them. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Adapting Your Instructional Strategy

Hi Laura, I think you are going to have great results from this activity. Let me know how it turns out. Sounds like both informative and enjoyable for everyone. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Developing Student Rapport

Hi David, You make a number of good points about the need to work on developing rapport with students. The result of rapport development is increased student satisfaction and retention. They will follow a person that they respect and trust just as you mentioned. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Blog

Using a Grading Rubric

Evaluating students is one of the hardest tasks that instructors face. Instructors want to be fair, accurate and informative in their evaluation efforts. This means they want to select assessments that give students the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and skills. One of those ways is to use a grading rubric to help students to see what they have accomplished and where they need to concentrate their efforts for improvement.

The format for a grading rubric is to seperate the assignment or project into sections so the students can see exactly where they received or lost points within each section. … >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Using a Well-prepared Syllabus

Hi Sarah, Yes, it is. It is amazing how often this part of the planning process is skipped over. A well-prepared syllabus answers many questions for students and helps them to get a clear picture of what the course is going to entail. Thus, we need to work hard at making them informative to the best of our ability. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Strategies for Keeping Students Engaged in Learning

Hi Eric, A lot of successful communication in teaching involves getting students engaged in the learning process. By being dynamic and entertaining instructors can capture the attention of students much easier. In all of this though we need to remember that we can only be who we are so we need to use our personal strengths as we work with students. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Effective Motivation Techniques

Hi Eulalia, Three excellent points for instructors to think about as they plan their courses. These will be of help to new instructor that are planning their strategies for their very first course. Thanks for sharing them. Gary

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