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

Motivating Learners

Hi David, I like your approach to sharing content with students. The idea of having some intrigue and challenge to the course content helps to keep the attention and focus of the students. It also makes it more fun for them to learn about. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Motivating Learners

Hi Jonathan, So true. They need to be able to "connect the dots" between the classroom and real life. The more opportunities they have to see application and relevancy to what they are studying the greater their engagement will be. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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The Human Factor in Retention

Hi Jan, There are excellent strategies for learning more about online students plus helping them to feel a connection between themselves and the instructor. Thanks for sharing them with us. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Making Your Expectations Clear

Hi Evan, I like all of your strategies to get the students engaged in the course and understanding how they will be evaluated. I use rubrics myself and find they really help students to understand why they received the points they did and where they need to improve. They also save time because I don't have to go over the general points but can zero in on the specific areas that the students are inquiring about. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Effective Motivation Techniques

Hi Ricardo, How to you draw your students out and get them to talking/discussing in class? Thanks in advance for sharing your techniques. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Defining Instructional Professionalism

Hi Victor, Right you are and each instructor needs to work at finding that balance. When the balance is found then comfort on the part of the instructor can set in enabling him/her to develop rapport with the students as well as excitement for teaching. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Developing Student Rapport

Hi Toni, Thank you for sharing these examples of how to create a connection with each student. This is so important and you have developed a very comfortable way of doing it, even in an online setting. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Student Motivation Factors

Hi Ron, Well said. Not caring is catching so we, instructors cannot ever be seen as not caring. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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Offering Varied Instructional Delivery

Hi Lendozia, Good point about using a number of different delivery methods to engage your students. When their learning preferences are being used their focus increases and this helps expand their learning options. Gary

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Developing Student Rapport

Hi Brian, Good point about the essential role the instructor plays in the learning process. Seeing the big picture of what the instructor brings to the classroom is important for the students. After all they get to learn from and study with a person that has earned his/her income from being successful in the content area of the course. Gary

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