Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Donald, Yes, some students are more motivated than others. These students come into class hard wired for the topic of the day. Other students come along for the ride. I use the more highly motivated students as learning leaders when we do group projects and activities. For the students than need more motivation I use a lot of examples and many of the examples from from their lives outside of school. I work to help them make a connection between what we are studying and how that content will help them in their personal lives. I have found that this… >>>

Brenda, You make a number of good points about the learning environment and student success. In my work I go to developing countries and set up educational programs. I recently was in a mountain village where the school was a cave. The only education supplies and resources were worn out textbooks that were over twenty years old. The children in the village were so excited about being able to go to school and learn to read. They thought the worn out and torn textbooks were made of gold. They arrived early, never missed and soaked up everything the teacher said.… >>>