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

Understanding Learner Characteristics

Fred, Good way to let them have input while gaining the information you need to adapt your instructional delivery to meet their needs. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Understanding Learner Characteristics

David, Way to go with your customizing of course content and delivery depending of the current group of students. This is what being an instructor of merit is all about. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Creating Personal Support Systems

Kimberly, This form of support is very important for students because for many the outside pressures of life can take them away from being focused on success as students. Knowing someone cares about them and their success is a great tool for engagement. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Accommodating Learner Preferences

Jan, By using your personal experiences in relation to the content being studied you are reinforcing the value of the course to students. Also, these stories motivate students to become engaged and focused on being successful in the course. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making a Positive First Impression

Cynthia, Good point and one that should help to increase the appeal of your course to and for all students. There is so much value to a course like your in all aspects of a student's development. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Managing Learner Behaviors - 2

Consider the following posts to the discussion: Learner 1 post to Learner 2: "I feel that this course is very difficult, and I just don't get the concept. I am trying, but I can't see me passing and I am not good at failure." Learner 1 post to Learner 3: "I wish that I had the ideas running through my head that you do. Great post." Learner 1 post to Learner 4: "I read your post and I am afraid that I have gotten overwellmed. I am just hoping to get through this class. I came from another program and… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

The Responsibilities of Teaching Online

Teaching a course online does not equate to the same responsibilities when teaching the same course in a traditional classroom setting. Do you agree or disagree? Explain your answer.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Managing Learner Behaviors

A learner has sent you an email challenging your choice of activities in the learning unit. He states that he doesn't believe that the discussion questions are relevant and the assignments are a complete waste of his time. How would you handle this learner?

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Providing Feedback

Consider the two scenarios below and describe how you will communicate to each of these learners. Discuss the reasoning behind your feedback decisions. Scenario 1: Mike turns in a self-evaluation of his performance on an assignment that indicates that he thought he did an excellent job and met all of the criteria in the grading rubric. When you grade Mike's assignment, you see that he has not done as well as he thought he did. Describe how you will communicate with Mike regarding his performance in relationship to how he thought he did. Without providing the details of your feedback,… >>>

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Assisting the Online Student

If an online student does not respond to your offers to help; as an online Instructor, there is very little more you can do. Do you agree or disagree? Explain your answer.

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